


White Roses

by TheEchoingSoul



Category: Ib (Video Game)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Aged-Up Character(s), Angst and Humor, Boarding School, Character Development, Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, F/M, Gallery Paintings - Freeform, Gen, Mild Gore, Multi, Near Death Experiences, Plot, Post-Canon, Promise of Reunion, Romantic Friendship, Slow Build, Slow Romance, Temporary Amnesia, Vague Time Period, Worldbuilding, still ongoing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-01
Updated: 2017-06-07
Packaged: 2018-01-17 19:57:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 127,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1400554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheEchoingSoul/pseuds/TheEchoingSoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On the way to St. Rose Academy, a prestigious art school, Ib encounters fellow transfer student Garry at the train-station. They're drawn to each other for reasons they don't understand, especially when strange things begin to happen around them, such as the disappearance of a student who only Ib seems to remember. The more they dig the more everything happening around them seems to be tied to this Gallery and, perhaps, even their own fragmented memories.  <br/>(Post-Canon. Promise of Reunion.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

"Art is not what you see, but what you make others see."

― Edgar Degas

 

Violent streaks of gold and white flashed across the stormy canvas. Drops of water blended into groups beat at the glass that divided the two worlds. Each splash hitting, only to slide down and disappear, ineffective. The sound of cymbals fused with the high-pitched whistle and roaring clatter of the train on its ascension across the tracks.

Ib shivered, the chill of the window finally getting to her. The gloomy weather outside made her think of home and how warm it would be at this time of year. The sun would be radiant with a light breeze to keep the humidity pleasant, and there would be a whirlwind of events (these she could do without), such as the outdoor parties her parents would attend or even host. It wouldn't have mattered since Ib would've been dragged along anyway, and expected to take part or be the scapegoat when faced with talking to the undesirables, to put it mildly.

Ib unconsciously wrapped her topcoat tighter around herself, grateful that those events wouldn't repeat themselves again this year. Instead, Ib has successfully managed to land a spot at Saint Rose Academy, a prestigious and highly selective art school. It was even rumored that anyone who attends, let alone graduates, is set for life, and, though far from home, her parents couldn't refuse such a rare opportunity. It would be a golden topic of conversation at those garden parties.

The day the scout had visited her home was still engraved into her mind. The man had had fair, long hair held back in a low ponytail, stubble, and his body frame was thick, nearly muscular. He had worn brown slacks and a matching vest over a white button up, which had stood out in the lavish room. Even the decor had looked too expensive in comparison, but that man hadn't even batted an eye or given a hint that he was uncomfortable. Instead, he was confident and had a presence that demanded attention. He carried her portfolio with him, and gracefully laid it out on the coffee table, went through a few minor details, and then handed Ib her acceptance letter.

Not two months later was she sent off, her parents driving her to the airport where they said goodbye, before catching a plane to America, switching planes twice, until finally boarding a train which would take her to Nivis Alba, a city, before she would have to hail a cab to the academy from. All in all, it should have taken three to four days at the least.

It was nearing the fifth day and Ib felt worn out. She hadn't been able to properly sleep on either planes due to excessive noise and crude people who either sat behind, in front of, or even next to her. The train was by far quite lax, but Ib felt to wired up to even attempt sleeping. The mere idea that she would be attending such a world-renowned school wasn't very nerve-wracking yet, it was the knowledge that her parents' influence would no longer reach her. She would know no one and others wouldn't know her parents, which usually equaled them attempting to be friendly.

Not knowing people, of course, was supposed to be part of the experience, but Ib had a problem with conversation and herself. From a young age, other children and even some adults would comment on her eyes. They would leave her out and some parents even told their children to stay away from her. Her eyes were always the first thing people commented on or looked act, which usually resulted in them feeling uncomfortable and either finding a hurried excuse to leave or staring at something else, knowing to be tactful. Still, smaller children and sometimes older children would still point it out. Over the years Ib had become accustomed to this and opted to stay silent most of the time, or even occupy herself so that others didn't feel that they had to approach her.

Ib peered out the window, watching the station approach as the conductor's voice broke through the silence, saying what they were paid to say at every drop-off. Ib stood and grabbed her luggage, hurrying out onto the platform before anyone could offer her assistance. She didn't want to bother anyone.

A single word to describe the train station would be grey. It was void of large quantities of people, the lighting was dim, and it felt empty. Ib could hear her steps and the rolling of her luggage like an elephant charging up stairs echoing all around her. She was self-conscious of it, but kept going nonetheless. She paused at the double doors, watching the rain fall for a moment before heading out. Cars flew past her, the rain was making it hard to stare anywhere but down, and a cab driver ignored her attempts to get him to stop.

It was a few minutes later when a taxi finally stopped and Ib hurried for the door, only to be met with another hand. They both drew their hands back, looking at one another in surprise. "You can have it." The male said, taking a step back and smiling good-naturedly. Ib wasn't sure why, but she grabbed his coat to stop him.

"We can split it."

"No, it's fine. Really." He said, but eventually gave in as the rain picked up.

The cab driver was putting their things into the trunk as they both waited in the backseat. The boy was running a hand through his damp lavender hair while Ib looked out the window. It was slightly awkward. "So, where are you headed?" Lavender guy asked, breaking the silence.

"St. Rose academy." Ib replied, watching as the guy paused. "Really? So am I. I didn't know they accepted children."

Ib returned her attention to the window, not bothering to reply.

"I didn't mean any offense, it's just that this school is like a college." Ib only nodded.

"My name's Garry."

"Ib."

 


	2. Chapter 2

Light in Nature creates the movement of colors.

 -Robert Delaunay

 

The rain was like a wave, cool and together, and moved across the window only to be replaced with a larger wave when the tide turned. The wind shuffled closely, just on the other side of the wave, like a lover, waiting for kismet. The moan of the waves and calling of wind...such loneliness, but from what? Were they forbidden to be together, separated by disaster, or was it a tragic one-sided love?

Ib blinked again and turned away from the window to face Garry, who was looking nervously at the deck of cards in his hands while glancing at her.

When he realized he had her attention, Garry apologized, "sorry, but I was wondering if you wanted to play Old Maid to, you know, pass the time?" 

Ib wasn't too sure if she should. Was it strange that they just met and he wanted to play cards? The taxi driver had told them it would be a long ride, so maybe he was bored. There was nothing outside the window to really took at due to the rain, and Ib really didn't want to say no.

Garry had grown more fidgety and uncomfortable the longer it took the brunette to answer, but it dissolved when she finally nodded yes. He nearly sighed in relief, but covered it up by shuffling his cards, which elicited a strange noise. Being used to the sound, Garry wasn't phased by it, but Ib payed rapt attention to the unfamiliar actions. She drank in the details: the cards' worn look, the way the numbers flashed before her eyes at an unreadable pace, and how each movement was thoughtless, a subconscious action that he had become accustomed to performing. It was captivating, though Ib wasn't sure why, and her fingers itched to sketch the scene; however, her sketchbooks were inside her suitcases which were located in the trunk.

After he shuffled the deck a few times, Garry passed out the cards and explained the rules, which were fairly simple. The only problem was that Garry had the old maid and, in cards, had a nonexistent poker face, but he chalked it down to Ib just being lucky. Denial.

Almost an hour later Garry decided to stop playing after losing every game of Old Maid and Go Fish (but he had won two rounds of War). Ib didn't mind, his expressions and outbursts were comical, and even the driver laughed a few times. Slowly they drifted into a comfortable silence, something Ib wasn't used to, but couldn't bring herself to break. How does one make friends anyway?

"Hey, kid, what's your major? My primary focus is culinary, but I have a few other classes." Garry, even though he had just met her, had noticed that he had to give a little for her to respond.

"Advanced art classes. I didn't know they had culinary." Ib replied, surprised that he cooked, but chided herself for judging based on appearances.

"Yup. Culinary, arts, music, and they even have photography." Garry replied, "Every student has a major and takes a class or two in another category. Do you only have art classes?"

Ib nodded, "That's what the letter told me. All my classes are for art."

"Well, don't worry. I'll go with you to the office to see if there's a mistake." He offered, and Ib was awed that he knew she was worried. Not even her parents could usually tell when she was nervous. She was about to voice her surprise when their attention was claimed by the cab driver, who was announcing that the school was just down the path.

Ib shifted her attention to look out the window to see the school grow closer. From what the brochure had said, the school was near the outskirts of Nivis Alba, surrounded by the forest. The path they had driven on was asphalt, and then dirt, but now it was cobblestone. A path of stones that led to the school. Charming.

Ib first saw the stone gate way, an intricate iron one, but she couldn't make out the designs due to the waves of rainwater. The building was next and even though the sky was dark and it was raining the building was beautiful. It was older Victorian style with a hint of gothic. There were a mix of bay-windows, casement windows, and regular windows evenly spread across the front. There were columns that created something akin to a barrel vault attached to the building. The building was made of goldish red stone and wood.

It was silent as the cab pulled up, parallel to the building. The two stepped out of the cab and anxiously moved towards the door to get out of the rain, before remembering their luggage. The driver laughed as he handed them their bags and bid them goodbye.

The two hurried into the building and Ib couldn't help but marvel at the entrance's high ceiling and the intricate designs that laced the wooden beams. It was all so lovely, but Ib couldn't help but notice that the style of the architecture were things she'd seen before, such as the cut or the fancy chandelier design.

"Ib, we should head for the office." Ib turned to him and nodded, following him since he seemed to know where he was going.

They walked in silence, their step resounding off the floor. The light coming through the windows were dim and Ib checked her watch, surprised that it read 7:15 since she had thought it would be earlier.

"Uh, Ib, do you know where we're going?" Garry asked, turning to look down at her.

Ib just looked at him blankly. "Weren't you leading?"

"We're lost." He said miserably, dropping to his knees on the floor and Ib couldn't help but find it comical, but composed herself.

Now she was faced with a problem. Garry had started all conversation thus far and now wasn't talking. Should she comfort him? What if he didn't want her sympathy? This was such a dilemma. Finally, Ib decided to just bend down and stare at him. It probably wasn't the greatest thing to do, but she wasn't comfortable in touching him and the words were lost to her. Maybe she could portray it through her eyes or body language.

It either worked, he realized he was the older one, or Garry just internally got over it because he smiled at her and stood up, "Don't worry, we'll find someone." Ib only nodded and stood up and followed him.

They knocked on doors and walked down a ton of hallways, but no one was there. They even found the office, but like the building, it was barren of people. While walking down the hall Ib paused to stare at a paintings of a woman dressed in red from the chest and up. She furrowed her brows, unsure of why the painting felt familiar to her. Ib took a glance at the plaque, which was located beneath the painting, that read _The Red Lady_. It was a simple enough title, something that shouldn't have stuck out to her, but Ib had to pull her gaze away from the painting, and then noticed that Garry was no longer with her.

Thinking rationally, Ib began to walk down the hall where they had headed to earlier. He probably kept walking, not noticing that she'd stopped to stare at a painting. Ib made sure to keep an ear out for the sound of Garry's footsteps when she heard something crash behind her. She jumped and turned around, but didn't see anything. Against her better judgement, curiosity won out and she began walking to where the sound came from.

Cautiously she can across a shattered window. She looked down the corridor for the source but didn't hear or see anyone. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a shadow pass by the window and snapped her head forward to look, but didn't see anything. Ib took a step back and was ready to just say it was her imagination when she saw a black hand reaching through the window.


	3. Chapter 3

Life imitates art far more than art imitates Life.

-Oscar Wilde

It's strange, you know. How one describes the absence of colour. Dark. Black. Abyss. Jet. Never ending. There are so many words to describe what it looks like, but not what it feels like. How does one describe something that shouldn't even be felt? Do they really feel it, or do they simply use words that they already know to describe it, not truly correct, but also not wrong? How does one describe it? This feeling of emptiness, of despair and such bone deep sorrow?

Ib wasn't sure how to answer it herself, but she felt weighted, like something was trying to crush her. There was also the feeling of being incomplete, of fading with every breath that was caught in her throat. If she had to describe what she could see it would be nothing. A word people usually described as black. A deep chasm that, like ink, flowed but lacked the life of things of shapes were everywhere, but nowhere, like shadows within a shadow, eating each other.

Where do these shadows even come from? Perhaps they are light's imperfections that aren't normally seen, or even those who only dwell within the shadows, but not in the way most people think. These shadows could be the unnoticed people, the afterimages that are not scene by the eyes of man. Could this be true? Is that why this darkness feels so... lamentable? Empty?

Ib could feel it, a covering that chilled her skin. She glanced around, could see nothing, but knew she was there, floating. She looked at what would have been down-for all she knew it could be up-and while seeing nothing, felt her foot hit a surface. It didn't create a sound, but the dark rippled just a bit like water. For just a second, Ib could hear something.

_O..e da.._

_I ...ell ...eep_

_a... ...ever ...ke ..._

She tried to listen, the words sounding familiar, but just as she was stringing together them together the black became restless. It swarmed up her leg, clawing and spreading as it tried to consume her. Ib tried to move but where was she to escape to? This place was nothing, she couldn't even see her own hands in front of her face. It consumed her waist and was reaching further when all of a sudden Ib felt dizzy. It was nearly unbelievable and cliche that she would faint at a time like this, but she couldn't help it.  
As her eyelids grew heavier Ib could faintly feel something wrap around her, only it wasn't cold or empty. She couldn't put her finger on it, but whatever this was felt... safe? Ib saw the darkness getting farther away, could feel the rush of wind after a pop met her ears, until she could no longer keep her eyes forced open.

* * *

She watched the brunette reappear from the dark puddle and observed the way she stood before slowly falling over onto her side. Her hair was spread out around her, some of it tangled with the shattered glass as the window repaired itself. The rain water evaporated and the dark puddle turned back into the hand and disappeared into the wall.

She turned her head and observed the boy, his face ashen as he shook from where he had fallen on the floor in shock. He was such a wimp, freaking out over that girl disappearing and reappearing again. It was ridiculous. Weren't boys supposed to be brave, valiant men that protected the weak? How disappointing this was.

Finally the boy composed himself and called out what was probably the girl's name, before hurrying over to her and checking her pulse. He breathed a sigh of relief when she lightly groaned and blinked her eyes open. They conversed (mostly the boy), exchanging statements of disbelief and confusion.

She giggled, these two seemed like fun. She stared at the brunette. How peculiar she was. There was something... off about her, something that made her weary but extremely curious. The boy wasn't too bad, but he wasn't striking like the girl... What did that boy call her? ...Ib. Yes, Ib that was her name.

She heard something to her left and silently cursed the timing. Of course that repugnant witch would ruin her fun. With a final glance back at Ib she smiled before disappearing. Things would finally be getting exciting around here. It was time for the play to begin.

* * *

Garry and Ib jumped in surprise when a loud voice broke the silence. They whirled around to see a woman with neat greying hair held in a tight bun. Her clothes were very professional and stiff, and her glasses were perfectly straight on her pointed noise. Her beady eyes glared at them as she stalked closer, "What are you two doing here this late at night!?"

"Umm..I..we... uh." Garry tried to form a sentence but couldn't find the words under the woman's stern stare.

"We are lost." Ib coolly replied, drawing both of their attention. Garry was surprised she had said anything and was even more surprised when she took out an ID card from her coat pocket and handed it to the woman.

The woman straightened her glasses and analyzed the card with more scrutiny than was needed before handing Ib her card back. "I see and you?" The woman clucked her tongue as he desperately searched his black coat for the ID that was given to him in his acceptance letter. He was sweating profusely by the time he shakily handed over his ID. The woman stopped her tapping foot and briefly read through it before handing it back.

"Both of you have arrived late. Follow me to the dorms." She curtly replied, her heels clicking against the floor as she walked away. The two followed behind her silently. Garry ran a hand through his hair before glancing at his watch and pausing. It read 7:15 but that couldn't be! It was 7:15 when they first started searching for the office. That couldn't be right!

"Ib, what time is it?" Garry asked and glanced down at Ib's watched. The girl also paused, it read 7:15 also, but... how could that be? They looked at one another and Garry was just about to ask how this could be when the woman coughed, staring at them.

"Hurry up."

"Yes ma'am." Garry replied and both continued to follow after her.

They were lead out of the central wing and all the way over to the northeast doors where they exited the building. They walked along a path until finally coming to, strangely enough, a Japanese type building. "These are the male dorms. Your room number is 207 on the second floor. The door is unlocked and you shall receive the key tomorrow morning in the office." Garry nodded.

"I'll see you later, Ib." Garry said, waving a few times before hurrying into the strange house.

The two females continued onwards. They didn't talk as they walked, only listening to the night. "Miss... Ib, these are the female dorms. Your room in located on the ground floor and is number twelve. It is unlocked and your key shall be ready for you in the office tomorrow morning. Do enjoy your first night."

Ib quickly walked into the Japanese styled building and was relieved to find that the doors were western styled. She walked past the entrance and to the left, scouting for her room number absently. That woman was like the others. She probably recognized her last name and her parents or something along that line. Ib really hated that. The lady tried to be professional but Ib caught her several times looking at her eyes, and each time she was caught the lady would snap her head forward.

Ib sighed as she found her door and would have walked inside if she hadn't heard something from next door. It was a soft scratching sound accompanied by broken whispering. Ib debated ignoring it when she heard a crash. Cautiously she walked over towards the door and knocked lightly. The sounds on the other side paused before continuing. The whispering grew louder and Ib was able to catch a few things before something slammed against the door, causing her to nearly fall backwards, but Ib steadied herself.

Hesitantly she entered her own room, reminding herself that she shouldn't get involved. It wasn't any of her business. Ib closed the door and set her bags down and decided to go to bed. She laid in the bed and couldn't help but frown at the unfamiliar feeling. Eventually she twisted and turned, thinking of the events from earlier. She glanced at her watch, 9:20 PM. It displayed the correct time so it wasn't broken, but then why did it glitch earlier? It had said 7:15, but Ib had checked it before then and it had displayed the same time. Garry's watch had done the same thing... Could it be a coincedence? What about that hand and the dark place?

Garry had even said that he saw her disappear and reappear, and Ib could faintly remember the feeling of being cold and something trying to swallow her and then... Garry's worried face. It was strange, but she could still feel the chills. Ib looked at her wrist as she rolled up her sleeve, staring at it absently as the chills lingered. She pulled the covers closer around her, shoving everything to the side for later. She had to get to sleep, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaAbx1ZTcB0


	4. Chapter 4

Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.

-Thomas Merton

 

It was a dance. Long, lanky limbs moving swiftly but vivacious and airy in the way they moved. Staying within range of the start, they join the other dancers sometimes in a ballet or waltz. Music was deafening only to them, colouring and moving them without restraint, unawares of their own music heard only by the listeners. For so long they would remain hidden, only shadows and gray flashes, but most knew what they were, could hear them long after the images were gone. How frightening, but beautiful the patterns of swaying leaves were stretched out along the ceiling.

Ib couldn't stop watching them, the pictures that only her ceiling at this time would play. The leaves were different, their secrets and dances laid out across the canvas. Even though gray and black, the leaves and tree limbs were beautiful, albeit different from their outer colourful facade in that they were free and no one could tell who they were. It was like a masked man meeting his beloved, only to meet again without the mask, he knew her, but she only knew the mask. Evidently the mask may be his true self, a release from the persona he uses daily. How tiring, a double mask to hide one's true self.

Ib turned her eyes away from the dancers, fixing them on the wall that separated this room from the one that she had tried to knock on just the night before. She could faintly hear something, but could not place what it was. She looked back up at the ceiling before sitting up, today would be her first day and she would have to go in early to receive her key and speak with the office about her schedule, she had forgotten to ask the woman.

She stood and walked over to her suitcase that she had yet to unpack, and pulled out her uniform: an orchid coloured skirt that was ruffled, a matching shirt with puffed short sleeves with white trim, the shirt also had a collar, but underneath it was a white shirt. Ib put it on along with her white socks and black shoes. The uniform, in all, wasn't too bad, but she wished there were sleeves, but all the other uniforms that were ordered hadn't come in yet. She grabbed a bag from her chair and left the room, wondering just what the day would bring. What of Garry? Would he still be as friendly, or would he think that she was weird and say away?

Ib could feel her mood dampen. It seemed like they could be friends, but he may have just been being polite. At least he had been a lot more tactful than most. She walked out of her room, closing the door and walked down the hall. A few other girls passed her, but didn't pause only looking back at Ib with tired, but curious eyes. Ib knew rumours would probably be circulating within an hour, if she was lucky.

Ib had just reached the door when she heard someone call out from behind her. "Hey! You!" Ib turned around, tensing as a girl with short dirty-blonde hair jogged over, blue eyes sparkling. "You're new, right?" Ib shrunk a little at her loud voice that echoed through the hall.

"Y-y-yes." Ib shyly replied, backing away from the girl who was to close for comfort.

"I knew it!" She laughed loudly, "My name's Amelia Jones!" She didn't wait for Ib to reply, grabbing her arm and dragging her out while talking non-stop.

"You're going to love St. Rose Academy. It's a pretty cool place, and the cafeteria food is awesome! There are a lot of different people here and there are tons of classes! I'm majoring in photography! There's culinary, different forms of art, some writing classes, and-Oh, here's the building! Isn't it awesome!? Like, all the decor is really pretty and victorian-y!"

Ib was trying to keep up with both Amelia and her mouth, but it was becoming rather difficult, especially when the school came into view.

"Man, oh man, I'm so hungry! I can't wait to chow down, you know? Hey, did I tell you that the food here is absolutely amazing!?" Amelia asked, walking even faster. "Man! I can taste those pancakes now!"

Ib finally couldn't keep up and happened to trip on an uneven stone. She would have fallen face-first if Amelia hadn't still been gripping her arm, so instead she hit her knee. Amelia quickly let go and let Ib steady herself. "Oh my, are you alright?" Her voice was much calmer, worry coloring it. Ib stood up, ignoring the sting that her now bleeding knee gave her, and nodded. She was ready to continue, but Amelia had another idea.

She picked Ib up bridal style and ran all the way to the nurse's office. Students moved out the girl's way instantly, whispers following along with laughter. Ib couldn't help but want to hide or at least repress this memory. It was very embarrassing! All she had wanted was to go to the office and pick up her key and ask about her schedule, instead a girl she had just met was carrying her like a princess through a good one-third of the student body, and it was all because of a bloody knee! Well, at least the girl hadn't walked off and left her alone. That was a plus.

Amelia kicked open the door to, what Ib guessed, was the nurse's office. The nurse didn't even turn around when she said, "Hello, Amelia. What seems to be the problem today?"

"She's injured!"

"Place her on the cot." The woman stated, going to the cabinet and taking out a few things.

Amelia carefully placed Ib down on the mattress before moving to stand by the bed. The nurse walked over and examined Ib's knee for a few seconds, before smiling, "Just a flesh wound." It seemed she was mainly telling Amelia since the girl sighed in relief. The nurse turned to the girl, "Oh, Amelia. What happened this time?"

The girl rubbed the back of her head and stared at the floor. "I heard there was a new girl, so I wanted to show her around..."

The nurse sighed, "Amelia, how many times do I have to tell you to be careful? It's good that you wanted to help a fellow classmate, but you must remember to keep in mind what they want." She turned to Ib and then back to Amelia, "Do you even know her name yet?"

"Well,..um..no." She admitted, fidgeting slightly as she looked down at the floor.

"You see? You just dragged this poor girl off without even knowing her name. You need to remember your manners." She scolded before turning to Ib, "What is your name?"

"Ib."

"It's great to meet you! ...Sorry, about earlier." Amelia said, putting her hand out. Not wanting to be rude, Ib did the same and they shook hands, only Ib winced, Amelia had a strong grip.

"Now then, Miss Ib where were you heading this morning?" The nurse inquired, cleaning out the wound and placing a bandage over it.

"The office."

"I know where that is! I can take you!" Amelia piqued up, even raising her hand.

"I don't know." Started the nurse, but Amelia didn't miss a beat. "We won't run, promise! I'll just take her to the office! Scouts honor!"

The nurse sighed, "Alright, but first will you please go grab a few paper towels from the bathroom for me?" Amelia saluted and was out the door, "I'll be right back!"

The nurse chuckled and Ib couldn't help but notice that the woman's hair was shorter than Amelia's and hugged her face. "Oh, dear I'm quite sorry about her, but Amelia really doesn't mean any harm. She's just...spirited and gets carried away at times. I do hope you won't hold this against her." Ib just nodded, Amelia didn't seem like a bad person. "Oh, how rude of me! I'm Charlotte Goldie, head nurse here at St. Rose."

She couldn't say anymore. Amelia was back, holding two stacks of paper towels. "Thank you, Amelia. Just set them on the counter, would you?" Once Amelia did so, Charlotte smiled, "You both are free to go, now. Have a good day girls."

Ib stood up and followed Amelia out the door with a wave to the nurse. As they walked down the hall Amelia turned to her, "I'm really sorry about that...can you forgive me?" Ib nodded, it was only a minor cut, no big deal.

The girl's eyes lit up and she clasped Ib's hands, "Really? Awesome! Let's go, come on!" She said, laughing while walking a bit faster, but Ib noticed that Amelia was going slow enough for her to keep up. Ib couldn't help but smile a bit at the kind action, but why hadn't she said anything yet around...No, she should be happy that she wasn't bringing it up... Maybe she hadn't even noticed. That thought was enough to make Ib smile a tad before they reached the office.

Amelia opened the door and walked in, Ib behind her. There entrance was met with a loud sigh from one of the secretaries, "Amelia, it's not even eight yet, what have you done now?"

"I didn't do anything! Promise! I'm just helping her." She stepped away and all gazes fell on Ib. The girl looked down, but could feel the eyes like bugs crawling across her skin. A lough resonated through the room and Ib glanced over to see it was a boy, "Caught another victim, huh?"

Amelia crossed her arms, "Shut up! No one asked you, Dmitri!"

"I wasn't speaking with you, rat."

"What did you say you-"

Ib tuned them out, walking towards the secretary who smiled brightly at her. "Quite an exciting morning on your first day, huh?" She said, laughing.

Ib nodded, "I was told that my key was here."

"Oh, yes, yes, here you go." The woman said and handed it to her. "Is there anything else?"

"Well, yes..." Ib started, but the other two began to yell louder.

"Go die in a hole!"

"You wouldn't even fit in one, would you, Zhirnyy?"

Unbeknownst to them, another student had entered and would have left, knowing this was another regular Amelia Vs. Dmitri Verbal fight. Alas, he was not just any student, and he was on assignment. He coughed, "Dmitri! Amelia! Stop this at once!"

"(S)He started it!" They yelled, pointing fingers at each other. The boy only sighed.

"Soaru, good morning, my friend." Dmitri greeted as if he just wasn't fighting with the girl next to him. Amelia greeted him also, nearly in the same manner only she hugged him. The boy, Soaru, blushed and pushed her off, coughing into his hand.

"What'cha doing here?" Amelia asked, glancing at him, only to finally notice the other boy with him. "Hey, who're you?"

Soaru sighed, "This is Garry. He's a new student."

Amelia opened her mouth in surprise but quickly smiled excitedly, "Me too! That's why I'm here!" She pointed at Ib, "She's new too!"

Ib looked over and was surprised to see Gary waving in her direction. Not sure what to do, she allowed Amelia to drag her over to the group. "Okay, so I'm Amelia, as you know, that's Soaru Sato and he's the student council president, and that idiot is Dmitri Braginski. Everyone, this is Ib!"

Ib just stared at her shoes, the buckle was quite new and looked to be made of metal. "Hello, Ib. Have you asked about your schedule yet?" Garry asked and Ib looked up in surprise. "I promised I would go with you, remember?" Ib nodded, unsure of what to say...She felt a tiny shred of hope that he really meant it.

"What!? You're schedule! What's wrong with it?" Amelia asked, looking at Ib.

"She doesn't have an elective." Garry explained for her.

"May I take a look?" Soaru asked Ib, and she pulled out schedule for him. He read through and looked pensive, "You're right, I believe a class may have been added by accident. Don't worry, I'll take care out if." He smiled, heading over to the secretary, "Mrs. Lanz, is the vice principal or administrator in yet?"

"Yes, he's in his office."

Soaru turned back to Ib, "If you would wait just a few minutes." Then he left.

Dmitri whistled, "He really knows how to get things done, no?"

"What class would Ib be put in?" Garry asked, glancing at Ib.

"Well, they'll probably see which classes have openings and Soaru will probably come out and ask her. They're pretty good with things like this." Dmitri replied, taking a seat at a table in the room. Amelia sat across from him, nodding enthusiastically. The other two remained standing.

"So, you two know each other? Secret lovers, long lost friends, do you like pancakes?" Amelia asked and Dmitri snickered. "That last one didn't even fit, stupid."

Amelia glared at him, but before she could Garry replied, "Wh-what!? No! We just happened to meet each other yesterday at the train station!"

Amelia frowned, "Alright, no need to yell." She smiled then, glancing at Garry, "Awe, denial is cute!" Garry blushed and tried to deny it, but Amelia was laughing much to hard to listen.

Ib looked at the wall, before glancing at Dmitri when he tapped her hand from his seat. He smiled, "Don't worry, Amelia is much, but not everyone is like her. I'm sure you'll like it here, so cheer up, yes?" Ib nodded, feeling a bit better.

At that moment Soaru walked out of the principal's office, "Miss Ib, there aren't many classes open, but you do have a few options. There's a drummer needed for orchestra or you can help out in one of the fashion classes, they also run a cafe here."

"Oh! That sounds like fun! What are you going to choose!?" Amelia asked excitedly.

"Bands cool! Drummers are amazing." Dmitri argued, but Soaru only sighed at them.

Ib shrunk a bit, unsure of what to choose. On one hand she didn't want to play the drum, but on the other hand she wasn't sure what a 'fashion class' would have in store for her.

"Hey, don't worry," Garry reassured her. "Just choose the one you want to do, even if just a little. You may like it in the end."

Ib nodded. Thinking about it, she knew drums didn't interest her, but fashion might be more...enthralling. Garry could be right, she may end up liking it. "The second option, please."

Soaru smiled and wrote the information on her schedule and handed it to her, "I'll send a note to the teacher to inform her ahead of time. Now, why don't you all head on to breakfast. They may not have many pancakes left if you don't hurry."

"What?!" Amelia shot up, "Let's go then! Move it!"

"Amelia, you should be careful. You might have to carry Ib through the school again." Dmitri teased, having heard the rumours and seen a flash of it himself.

Amelia pouted, Ib looked at her shoes, and Garry was confused. Soaru merely sighed, "Luno and Lumi are waiting for you."

"Really!? Ib, come sit with me!" Amelia called, dragging Ib towards the door, but Ib grabbed Garry's sleeve. "Can he come to?" Amelia blinked then smiled, "Yup! The more the merrier!"

Dmitri clapped a hand on Garry's shoulder, "Good luck, you'll need it with her." He indicated towards Amelia with his chin and smiled. "I'll see you all later."

"Whatever!" Amelia yelled back as she dragged the two new students from the office.

"Should we have really let them go alone with Amelia?" Soaru asked hesitantly, still staring at the door.

"Lumi and Luno will be there, maybe Gillian will be there too, no?"

Soaru sighed, silently praying for Ib and Garry's sanity.

"Oh, they'll both be fine. Amelia is loud and rather emotional, but the red-eyed girl is very quiet. They may become very good friends." Mrs. Lanz spoke-up, catching the two boys off guard. "As for the boy...He'll be good friends with that girl, they're already closer."

The two boys didn't quite get it.

* * *

"Garry."

"What is it, Ib?" He asked, sliding his tray down the line next to Ib's, Amelia already half down the line.

"Thank you...For coming with me, I mean." Ib said, staring at her tray.

"It's nothing. If you need anything I'll always help you."

It was silent before Ib suddenly asked, "...What about yesterday?"

"Let's talk about that...Somewhere less open." Garry suggested quietly and Ib didn't reply, staying quiet.

Garry looked at her then at his tray. Ib was talking more than she had yesterday, and it made conversation a bit easier. It was a bit hard to believe that already so much had happened, strange things, but he was taking it quite well. He glanced at Ib again, she looked a bit sad but also neutral. Her face was a relaxed, and she wasn't smiling but she also wasn't frowning.

The two received their pancakes and followed Amelia to a table where a boy and girl were sitting. Both had very fair, pale-blonde hair only the girl's hair was just past the nape of her neck in the back, but was cut diagonally so it was longer in front, and the boy's hair was longer, held in a half bun that cascaded to his shoulders. As they approached, the two looked up and Ib couldn't help but notice that their eyes were a bright blue colour.

"Hey Lumi! Luno!" Amelia yelled, waving a tanned arm. Lumi smiled and waved back, eyes lighting up as they closed in and sat down. Amelia pushed Garry next to Luno and Ib on Lumi's left, taking the girl's right. "Lumi, Luno, this is Ib and that's Garry! They're new students!"

"Hello, it's nice to meet you!" Lumi said, gripping Ib's forearm in greeting, doing the same to Garry. "Hey, Luno, say hello."

"I know. It's a pleasure." He stated, also gripin Ib's and Garry's forearm.

Lumi smiled, "So, you've had an exciting morning, huh?"

Garry grimaced and Ib took a bite out of her pancakes.

"That answers that." Luno stated while standing, "I have to get to class. That man can't seem to do anything by himself. I shall see you later." He turned to Lumi and they both put a hand to their hearts and then extended their hands into a wave.

"Good luck." Lumi replied.

"Are you two...Going out?" Garry asked, only for Amelia to snort and laugh through the food in her mouth. Garry blushed as she laughed so hard she turned red.

Lumi only chuckled, "No-no, Luno is my brother. We're twins to be exact."

"O-oh." Garry replied awkwardly as he stared at his tray.

"Don't worry, you're not the first or last to think such a thing. Ib, did you think so also?"

Ib shook her head, "No. I could tell you were siblings, only your eyes are a bit lighter."

Lumi looked surprised, "Really, no one else has ever noticed that. You must be really observant."

Ib looked down at her half eaten food shyly. She had thought it obvious.

"Well, I believe classes are going to start soon. Do you two need any help getting to class?" Lumi asked, and Garry looked down. "Well, I'm not sure where this room is." The two stood up and Lumi looked at the room number, "Oh! I know where that is! I can show you the way. Ib may I see yours?"

Ib handed the paper over and Lumi smiled again, "You're a bit far, but both your classrooms aren't too far from one another, I'll show you the way."

"Hey! Ib is my new student!" Amelia whined.

"Your classroom is in the opposite direction."

"I wanna go."

"Mrs. Petri will be very angry, and you can't afford another detention."

Amelia was silent for a few seconds, "Well, I'll see you guys later! See ya!"

"So...overwhelming." Garry muttered, watching Amelia leave.

"Come on you two, or else you'll be late!"

* * *

The walls were lit up by the rays flowing through the window, gleaming off the chandeliers and reflecting onto the walls. The floors were still shiny, pristine, and empty in a way. Shoes clicked and echoed as they hit the floor, but continued on, ignoring the hollow sound. The painting looked out from their frames, showing emotion that may or may not be warmth or cold in the sun or shade. Their colours were there, but worn by the sun. Overshadowed due to light, how morbid and sorrowful. They could only wait for night,but even then if the lights were turned off they would be consumed in the night's shade.

Ib turned her attention back to her class, wanting more than nothing for the teacher to stop talking. She wanted to paint and from what she heard, that is exactly what they were doing, and it was free-hand. For the most part, her other art two art classes that she'd had earlier were not bad, only bland because the teacher was telling them what to draw, but in this one she would finally be able to do what she wanted.

After this class would be lunch, and then her final class of the day. She was a bit nervous, but excited for lunch. Before they had parted, Lumi had asked Garry and her to eat with them, and they'd agreed. Ib couldn't help but be happy, even when someone in every class she had so far asked if red was her natural eye colour, though it still bothered her. Many students had tried talking to her, but, like when she was younger, they saw her eyes and grew nervous and uncomfortable.

"Alright, you may begin." The teacher announced, and Ib immersed herself in work.

* * *

Garry waited outside his classroom, examining a few of the paintings on the wall as he waited. So far, his day was going 'alright'. A few other students talked to him, even gave him pointers, but it was clear that they backed off once he finished ahead of them. They probably thought he was some poor student. He sighed, the male uniform wasn't bad, but he loved his coat and even if it was a bit old, he couldn't let it go.

Glancing to the left, he noticed something familiar about one of the paintings that nearly made him choke on the oxygen he was breathing. In the painting was a puddle and a broken window that looked just like the one from last night. He coughed, shaking his head. There was no way...right?

He turned and saw Ib standing there, causing him to jump in surprise, "EEK! ...Ib? Thank god, it's only you." He sighed in relief, bracing himself against the wall.

Ib stared at him.

"Sorry, but doesn't this painting look...familiar?"

Ib looked at it, staring blankly, but then nodded, "It is. This is nearly the same scene."

"I knew it! Could this mean something though?" Garry asked, trying to link the two.

Ib didn't reply as she thought about it also.

"We should come back tonight and find out." Garry hesitantly said, "I know it's certainly not the smartest idea, but something did happen... Do you think we should leave it alone...?"

"I'm not sure." Ib replied before turning back to the painting. She could tell Garry really didn't want to, and neither did she.

They walked away and headed to the cafeteria where they met Amelia, Lumi, Luno, Dmitri, Soaru, and another girl for lunch. The new girl took one look at Ib and stared intently at her for a good fifteen minutes before suddenly halting all conversation with just a few words, "Real red-eyes?"

Ib stared at the table top, suddenly not hungry. "Yes."

Gillian nodded, crossing her arms before smiling, "Yes, this shall work! Now I just need a basket and nude coloured bras and panties.

Garry sputtered and coughed, Dmitri hitting him on the back to help. Amelia was howling with laughter, Soaru's face was two shades of red, and Lumi and Luno were talking amongst themselves. "Don't worry! Gilly's a photographer, and she loves nature and the human body!" Amelia finally got out through her laughs.

"The body is it's own language, and mixed with the ancient language of nature...Oh, it's just divine!" Gillian gushed.

"Just continue eating and ignore her, yes?" Dmitri said, sighing as he ate.

Ib didn't touch her food, the question getting to her, but couldn't stay upset when she now understood why she asked. "You alright?" Ib nodded and Garry and finished her lunch, listening to the conversation. It was quite eventful, like she'd been sitting with them for longer than just a day.

"Well, I'll see you all at dinner." Lumi said, getting up and leaving.

"Oh, that's right!" Amelia exclaimed, turning to the two, "Dinner is from six to nine. Most people's classes let out around four, but there are some classes that run a bit later. I'll see you all at dinner!"

Ib and Garry nodded, leaving the lunch room to attend classes. "See you later."  
"See you later."

The two separated,

But it seems that regardless of trying to stay away

The Trouble would come to them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me if this is wrong, but Zhirnyy is Russian for 'fatty'.


	5. Chapter 5

Pictures must not be too picturesque.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

The echoes resound, humming and whispering through winds, unable to be seen. Long shadows stretch out, touching the rays carefully, longingly. Shorter shadows stay low, lurking around the rays, longing for the taste of temptation, a sip of poison. Still, they turn an eye that wished to be blind, aware of the consequence of touch. Softly they travel, their sorrows trailing and mixing into the mass. The others, lucky not to be of shadow, but near discarded, cry out in rage, pain, and fear that can't be heard. Never be heard.

Echoes whispered so softly, drawing no attention, yet one was heard loud and clear. A delicious thought spoken in words, a want, a need. A treacherous deed. For only a split second, light and shadow froze, caught off guard by such a thing. Without another word nor a sound, they flowed. Only now their thoughts were entwined. It was merely a sip, a tiny sip of poison wine.

* * *

Ib opened the cherry wood door to her 'fashion' class slowly, taking her time to peer in. Inside were worktables and around twenty or more students. Some were in groups, hunched over tables with large papers while others were either sewing or doing something of the like. The thing that stuck out most was how loud the room felt, even though the students were talking near silently. It felt like there was a slight tenseness and sense of hurry.

Ib stepped further in, lightly closing the door behind her. No one noticed her entrance. Ib wasn't sure if that was good or bad. In a way she liked the silence, sitting with Amelia and company, even if it were just for lunch, was enough to make her head hurt from the noise, but she had been noticed. Right now...It was like being at home. The heavy atmosphere, but the silence and lack of words made her feel like a scorned child in time out.

Ib located the teacher and, with her head down, made her way over. "Excuse me?" She said, coming to stand behind her. The lady turned around, looking down at Ib through her square-framed glasses, observing her a second before lightly smiling. "You must be my new student, Ib, right?"

Ib nodded, staring at the woman's black pumps shyly.

"You may address me as Ms. Noelle, or just Ms. Nel." She introduced. "Today, we're starting designs for our Autumn showcase. You've actually shown up just in time."

Ib looked up at the teacher blankly. "Oh, I should probably explain what you'll be doing-"

"Ms. Nel, Mr. Klein needs you!" A girl called from the doorway.

"Oh, I'm deeply sorry Ib, but I'll have to have another student help you." She apologized with a sigh. "Kate! Could you come here?"

A girl walked over briskly. "What is it?"

"This is Ib, she's going to be helping out. Could you explain it all too her, please?" The girl nodded, and Ms. Noelle hurried out of the room.

Ib could feel the girl's eyes on her, which resulted in Ib keeping her head down. Finally the other girl spoke, "I'm Kate Gridlings, welcome to our fashion class. Usually things aren't so quiet, but today is a deadline and beginning of a new assignment, so everyone is pretty focused." Ib noted that she had a kind voice, and so she looked up at her.

Kate had fair brown hair, long and in a cascading waterfall braid. Ib glanced at her eyes, grey with some black eyeliner, but were staring back at her, not looking away. The eye-contact wasn't a challenge, more like an invitation, a look to a fellow worker of equal value.

"You're a helper, right?" Ib nodded. "Well, helpers are a bit different than the regular students in this class. You'll be graded like everyone else on drawing for designs, but you won't be making them. Helpers are just what they sound like, they can help others with design ideas and you'll probably be used as a mannequin, but don't worry about that yet."

"Kate! I need help! This sleeve is all wrong and I can't get this stitch right!" Another girl ran over, only pausing when she noticed Ib. The girl stared at Ib, much like Gillian had, before grabbing her. "You'll be perfect!"

"Wait, Raina!" Kate called, but the girl dragging Ib over to one of the worktables didn't falter. Raina stopped by the table and picked up a garment, holding it out to Ib.

Ib just stared at it, unsure of what she should do, but thankfully Kate caught up. "Raina, you can't just grab someone like that." The other girl pouted before rolling her eyes. She turned back to Ib, "Will you please put this on?" Ib looked at Kate, the girl chuckled.

"I said you would be used as a mannequin. In reality you'll just be the model, oh Raina, don't forget to take measurements so we have them on file." Ib sighed inwardly as Raina nodded enthusiastically and led (Read: Dragged) her to a backroom where she could change.

As she put on the dress, Ib couldn't help but think that Garry may have been wrong, she wasn't enjoying this class. If anything, she was confused on how she would be graded. She would have to ask Ms. Noelle or have Kate further explain. Ib finished, leaving her uniform folded neatly on a stool as she hesitantly walked back out. The garment was a dress, a purple one that ruffled and puffed at her hips. The sleeves puffed at the shoulders, tighter around her arms before stopping in a long, narrow triangle at the base of her middle fingers. The bodice itself was open at the neck, revealing a lavender-pink coloured undershirt.

Looking up she saw the class looking at her, and so she looked back down. Raina let out a triumphant sound and pulled Ib over to a two-inch cylinder stand, instructing her to stand on it. Raina pulled out a needle and thread and set to work fixing a few things. Kate came closer, smiling, "It fits well, you look really nice Ib."

Raina snorted, "Of course she does! It's my masterpiece after all!" She looked back at her work, before commenting absently, "Hey, you have an excellent figure for this. Not too scrawny, but not thick. Too bad the bust isn't a bit bigger." The last part was mumbled haphazardly, but Ib still heard and blushed a bit. It wasn't her fault she's underdeveloped!

Kate placed a comforting hand on Ib's shoulder, "Sorry about this, but at least you've gotten the first one over."

Ib only nodded, trying to form her words correctly, "How...exactly will I be graded?"

Kate nodded in understanding, realizing her earlier explanation hadn't been thorough enough. "You'll be graded on submitting designs, helping out others as their 'mannequin', small side projects, and modeling in showcases or at the café."

Ib looked at her intently, mouth opened in surprise for a few seconds, "Modeling?"

Kate nodded, "Designs that pass are featured in showcases or at fashion shows we throw at festivals or at the café. We even do charity benefits, or auction off outfits. You'll be assigned to a group that will be debuting their design and wear it for them." Kate continued, noticing Ib's shell-shocked look, "Of course it would be cruel to just throw you onstage, so you and a few others will take some walking classes when there isn't much to do or as the shows get closer. The drama department has a few students who will be helping out to teach you, so you'll be well prepared before the show."

Although Ib blanked her face, Ib still felt a bit ill. The prospect of having to walk on a stage, in front of so many people, and that any mistake she might make would be seen by anyone. She would be on display. People would be depending on her. She might have to wear heels!

Kate squeezed her shoulder, drawing Ib's attention to her. "Ib, now this probably is nerve-wrecking and scary, but you're not alone. We'll all help, you just need to ask. If it get's too much, don't be afraid to speak up." Raina nodded, and a few students who were listening in voiced their agreement.

Ib only nodded, a faint smile briefly appearing as she looked at Kate, thanking her silently. She wasn't sure if Kate understood, but the girl smiled at her.

Once Raina finished, Kate asked Ib to try on a simple pink dress. Apparently she had a design thought of, but needed to see it on someone else. As Kate pinned and stitched, they lightly conversed. It wasn't a meaningful conversation nor was it lazy, but it passed the time well enough.

Kate placed the translucent gabardine onto the dress, pinning it onto the shoulders. Ib liked the dress, the dress didn't have sleeves, but the piece Kate just pinned on made up for it, resting against Ib's upper arm. The colours were all soft pinks and cream, matching perfectly together without looking overbearing or washed out. Ib was in complete awe at how lovely the dress was.

"Finished, thank you Ib. Now I can sew these on later." Kate commented. Ib nodded and went to carefully change out of the soft material. She gave Kate back her dress, and Ms. Noelle arrived back.

"Hello class, it appears time is nearly up." She said, walking further into the room. "For homework I want each one of you to design a costume. Remember, be creative!"

Faint whispers flowed through the empty hall, flowing and lively. They rushed back and forth, the shadows lengthening and multiplying as the sun's rays darkened, fading away, gone. Artificial lights shone down, giggling with the shadows endlessly. Unheard words flowed between the mass, moans of sorrow and the crashing of waves.

Steps echoed lightly, and the unheard noise silenced, watching for the source. A girl with brown hair walked past them, staring ahead, but as one of the mass coughed the girl paused, looking over at the wall where it came from. Everything went dead silent as the girl scrutinized the painting before continuing down the hall.

The spectacle had only happened briefly, but it was enough for them to stay quiet. They had been heard, something was off, could this be a sign? A harsh voice silenced them, making them submit. A dead silence filled the halls, this was not right. It was not yet time for  _her_ to be awake.

Ib paused in her walking, shivering as she glanced behind her. Nothing was there, but she felt like someone was watching her. Walking a bit faster, she made her way down the corridors, towards the cafeteria. It was nearing seven and dinner would be over at eight, Amelia had been wrong when she said nine, that was for breakfast.

A crash to her left made Ib jump and freeze. She glanced ahead to where there was another hallway to the right, the crash echoing from there. Ib slowly walked towards it, remembering the night before. She turned into the hall and saw a smashed vase lying on the floor. As she kneeled down before the vase, the water rippled from her shoes and she reached for one of the larger pieces that didn't look too sharp. Seemingly out of nowhere the shard moved, cutting the palm of her hand, a sliver of blood dripped off, hitting the water.

It was red, it was a violent shade, a terrifying colour. It stained, devoured, and consumed to form its own world. From deep in the decaying core a scream rang out, a hand protruding from the sea in a fruitless attempt for salvation.

Ib fell back, closing her eyes as she curled up. She covered her ears with her hands, trying to block out the noise, but still heard the piercing scream ringing in her ears. She attempted to calm herself, but fear was keeping her frozen. With a few deep breaths she opened her eye a bit and once she saw there was no immediate danger, she looked down, but all she saw was her own large red eyes staring back at her, and a small amount of blood.

Ib uncovered her ears and looked at her hand. Her palm was bleeding.

"Hey, are you alright?" She looked ahead and saw Garry rushing over, his own eyes widening when he saw her. "Ib, what happened?! Are you alright?" He bent down next to her, careful not to make any sudden movements as he reached for her injured hand, "Just a flesh wound."

Ib could have laughed, having heard that earlier in the day, but it wasn't funny. She looked down, shaking a bit, but was surprised when Garry awkwardly put a hand on her shoulder. It was warm. "Come on, we need to get that taken care of."

Garry helped Ib stand, leading her to the nurse silently. He knew something had happened, but knew that he should wait until she was calmer to ask what had happened. If he was honest with himself then he suspected it had something to do with what happened the night before.

The nurse took one look at Ib and set to work, joking when she asked if seeing Ib in her office would become something normal, but neither of them even humored her with a half-hearted smile. The nurse put a bandage on Ib's hand and found another cut on the back of her leg, probably from a shard that she hadn't seen when falling backwards.

Once finished, they walked to the cafeteria quietly. The silence bothered Garry, so he finally asked, "What happened?" Ib paused, staring at the wall before looking at him.

"I...saw something. I saw a girl crying for help, but I don't know who she is." Ib stated after thinking through her words.

"The person you saw... Do you remember anything about her?" Garry asked, a bit scared that what she said was true.

Ib shook her head, "No."

Garry paused before walking again, "We should get some dinner, can't think on an empty stomach."

Ib just followed him quietly to the cafeteria, through the line, and even to the table where Lumi was currently waving at them. With her was only Soaru, Amelia, and Gillian.

"Hey, guys!" Amelia greeted before taking a sip of her milkshake.

"Evening Ib, thing." Gillian greeted, pulling Ib closer to her, but Amelia quickly pulled her in between Lumi and herself. Garry just rolled his eyes at Gillian, "I'm not 'thing'."

Gillian pouted as Amelia hogged Ib, "Shut it, thing."

"I'm not a thing!"

"That's right, Gillian, he isn't yours to use." Lumi remarked, causing Amelia to spit out a stream of milkshake from laughing. Soaru moved his tray as she did, avoiding milkshake from ruining his noodles. Garry and Gillian turned red, trying to come up with a comprehensible sentence to throw at the blonde, but the girl had already turned back to her conversation with Ib and Soaru.

"Where are the others?" Garry asked, glancing around for anyone else.

"Luno went back to the dorms to work on a project and Dmitri is unwillingly helping him." Soaru calmly replied, resuming his meal.

"Who cares about that jerk anyway!" Amelia voiced, angrily biting off a large chunk of her sandwich. Gillian merely smiled as the others ignored Amelia's outburst, it was quite normal.

"Awe man! I have to head back early." Amelia suddenly said, finishing her soda. "I have to find my camera."

"But you already have it with you." Gillian said, indicating to Amelia's bag.

"No, my old one. It has some pictures on it that I need." Amelia said while standing, "I'll see ya alls laters!"

Once out of earshot, Soaru turned to the others, "A rare moment of seriousness from Amelia. The world has ended."

Lumi giggled a bit, smiling politely as Gillian rolled her eyes at the failed attempt. Garry and Ib simply observed, finished with their own meals.

"Ib, would you like to head back with me?" Lumi asked, also finished with her meal. Ib nodded, standing up with her. "Bye everyone."

"Good bye." Ib said, glancing at Garry before turning to follow Lumi.

The two girls threw out the trash and walked towards the dorm silently, listening to crickets and the wind. "Ib, did you enjoy your first day?" Ib turned and looked at Lumi, before looking forward. She thought about her day: meeting Amelia, being carried to the nurse, meeting Dmitri and Soaru, seeing Garry again, meeting Lumi and Luno and having breakfast with them all, her classes, lunch and Gillian, her last class, Kate and Raina, and what she happened in the hall.

"I believe I did." Ib finally answered, and it was true. Many things had happened, but most of it was good or even fun. Sitting with them all felt strange, but it wasn't a bad strange. Things were...good, in a way.

Lumi smiled, "I'm glad to hear that. I was worried."

"Worried?"

"Yes, you seemed a bit down at dinner, quieter than usual." Ib didn't look at the girl next to her as she wondered how Lumi had noticed when they had only met that morning. There wasn't enough time to ask since they had arrived.

"Oh, Ib." Lumi said before they parted, "If you need anything, my room is 18, and Amelia's is 21. Gillian is in room 35 on the third floor. I'll see you at breakfast tomorrow."

Ib nodded and bid her goodnight, walking back to her room. As she sat on her bed staring at her hand she had the urge to get up and walk, but it was getting dark. A chill made her shiver, so she changed clothes and tried to sleep. She tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep for the longest time.

She sat up and read the time displayed on the clock, 3:29 AM. With a groan she plopped back down in desperation to sleep, but her hands were itching. It was a familiar urge that she'd had for years. It was the urge to draw. With a tired sigh, Ib got up and took out one of her spare sketchbooks. Flipping to a random page, she grabbed one of her drawing pencils, and started to draw, not even bothering to turn on a light, instead moving the curtains to let in the moonlight, even if it only helped a little.

Ib wasn't sure how long she sat there or when she fell asleep, but when she woke up all she knew what that her limbs were stiff and that she was cold. She stood up, stretching as she moved to grab her clothes and a bag. Amelia and Lumi had informed her at lunch about the showers, and Ib decided that she needed to relax, if only a little.

A few girls giggled when Ib passed them, but she wasn't sure why. As she waited in line a girl in front of her was kind enough to let her in, "You have smudges on the left side of your face." and Ib looked down at the floor in embarrassment, remembering that she had fallen asleep while drawing. Once in the shower, Ib thoroughly scrubbed her face to rid herself of the pencil smudges. As she was getting dressed, Ib shivered from the cold, hurrying to recover some sort of warmth.

As she was walking towards the school, Ib kept shivering, feeling like she was forgetting something important. At the lunch table she found only Garry. He greeted her, but notice how she was shivering. "Do you have something?" Ib shook her head, she felt fine other than being cold. As time ticked on, it only got worse, and once her teeth started to chatter Garry stood up and convinced her to walk around to get her blood moving, which would hopefully warm her up a bit.

While walking Ib didn't feel like anything was changing, until they were by a hallway undergoing reconstruction. Ib walked closer to the tape, her body temperature improving with each step. She walked over the tape, feeling that something was off.

Garry called her name, hurrying to follow her, but Ib didn't wait for him to catch up. Her temperature was getting higher and higher, growing so hot that she could feel her blood boiling in her ears. She came to a halt at an overturned frame lying on the ground. Carefully, she picked it up, and all the heat that had been building up suddenly dropped, chills overcoming her as goosebumps rose on her arms, but nothing was there. It was an empty frame.

"Are you alright?" Garry asked worriedly, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I'm fine. This hallway is warmer, thank you." Ib replied, placing the frame back down before starting to head back towards the cafeteria.

Once there they were met with Luno holding Lumi as she hit her face in the crook of his neck, Amelia holding her hand. The others were quiet, the atmosphere wrong from the usual loud group.

Ib could tell something had happened, could feel it in the shivers that raked her body. She needn't say anything, Soaru quietly told them the news that shocked Ib.

Kate Gridlings was proclaimed missing this morning.


	6. Chapter 6

The beginning is the most important part of the work.

-Plato

 

Cold, frozen, cracks... There were cracks in the foundation of a once perfect structure. It stood tall and brooding, but there. It had once been a beacon, a light in a storm, but not today. The storms had been too much, the pressure far too great. The water below the citadel rose like a tidal wave, but as it died away, the lurid horrors remain for another day. Worn and jaded, cast astray, the citadel could not anticipate the last attack that broke it in half. The clouds would stay another day, casting shame upon the cracks.

The onlookers watched with horror and restraint. Even the toughest facade could be crushed, crumbled, and broken if pushed enough. The only words remaining were the sadness the act entailed. The hackneyed words of those unaffected, of those who were only onlookers, not the eyes to the storm.

Ib couldn't think. All she saw was through someone else's eyes, not her own. She didn't watch as Lumi fought tears, didn't see Luno hug his sister, and didn't want to hear what she just had. There had to be some mistake. Kate, the girl who had helped her such a great deal just the day before, could not have gone missing in that short amount of time. It had to be a fluke, a mistake! Something like this just couldn't happen, right?

Not sure what she should do, Ib remained standing. What should one do in such a situation? A simple "are you okay?" seemed ugly and useless when it was obvious that things were anything but _ok_. Ib hadn't known Kate long, but the girl was someone that had been helpful, friendly, and a lot like a potential friend, if it could be called that.

An unfamiliar girl hesitantly approached the table, her hands fiddling with her tie. "Umm...E-excuse me." Ib turned to her. The others also slightly turned, but did not cease their own small conversations in softer tones. The girl looked at Ib, more importantly her eyes which caused her own to widen and snap back to the ground.  _A normal reaction,_  Ib thought to herself almost sadly, but didn't have the time for self-pity. It was a tiring feeling anyway.

"Well, umm, I was asked to i-inform e-everyone that..that..." She continued stumbling before Soaru sighed, "You were told to tell all the students you could about going to the office, correct?

The girl blushed, but nodded. "Umm...Well, yes...So, please report there." She turned and left in a hurry, not looking back as she left the cafeteria. Soaru sighed, mumbling to himself before standing, "No doubt the guidance counselor is checking in on everyone. You should go, Lumi." The fair blonde stiffened, her unsettling gaze meeting the Japanese boy's in a silent protest. The other only sighed, "Lumi, don't start this again."

The girl untangled herself from her brother and calmly stepped away from Amelia, pointedly not looking at them all. "I'm not starting anything, Sato." Her tone was icy and clipped. Ib glanced at Amelia, the girl looked at her and shrugged, indicating that they shouldn't get involved. "Lumi..." Soaru started, but Luno cast him a dark look. "If my sister doesn't want to visit your stupid shrink then she doesn't have to." "It's required that all students visit in times like these. I know she doesn't want to, but school policy-" "I'm leaving." Lumi stated as she picked up her tray. Ib silently watched the other girl walk away, leaving the cafeteria and an exasperated Japanese teen behind. Once out of earshot, Soaru sunk into his chair with his head in his hands, sighing. Amelia patted him on the back, "You knew it was going to happen before you said it."

"I know, but you would think she would have gotten over the fear already." Soaru replied before looking around the table, "Did I cross the line?"

Luno merely sighed while Dmitri looked at his conflicted friend. "You scooted around the main problem, but you knew how she was going to react. You should have left it alone."

Ib and Garry merely watched, unsure as to what just happened, but knew that they shouldn't ask. Whatever had happened Ib knew that she shouldn't pry into the affair, it seemed personal and like the elephant in the room. In a way, it felt like yesterdays closeness was smoke and mirrors, finally showing that there was a gap between herself and the group. She did not know yet if this gap could be crossed.

And that's what scared her.

* * *

_Quiet. Be silent._  It was whispered smoothly along the corridors, findings its way into the nooks and crannies. All that heard ceased their movements, waiting for what was to happen next. The taste of temptation still lingered, the knowledge of what had happened making them anticipate the next show. The next taste.

_Watch. Watch._ It whispered, and so they did, looking with hollow eyes that had long sunk and gone blind. The happening was enough to draw the attention, but what of the sight? The theatrics were grand, but the miraculous light of vision was only a rumour. Silently, they wished to do more than watch the display. Yes, they would take an active part. They too would no longer be the backdrop of a play gone wrong. They would become the shining stars, the prima ballerina, the star of the show. Yet all they were missing was the script, one made up by the puppeteer. Yet, how do you know who is pulling the strings when the strings are invisible to the eye?

Simple.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

You don't.

* * *

Ib stared at her drawing silently, unsure of what she was even doing or what she had been trying to draw. It was strange, she normally didn't black out like that. Zone, yes, but black out and not remember anything? Never. She just got a little too focused at times, but this was different. It was comparable to coming out of a nap and looking at the clock only to find that it's 12, only you can't remember which twelve it is, morning or noon? Does it even matter? You want to turn over and go back to sleep, but the panic of not knowing keeps you up. How long has it been? Hours? Days? Mere minutes?

Ib rubbed her eyes as she tried to process what she had been trying to draw. A memory of her teacher saying something about a showcase slowly crawled back. They were supposed to be starting on a piece that may be entered into the next showcase. That brought back another memory of just the other day,  _"Designs that pass are featured in showcases or at fashion shows we throw at festivals or at the cafe. We even do charity benefits, or auction off outfits. You'll be assigned to a group that will be debuting their design and wear it for them."_ But who had told her? An image appeared in her mind, but it became foggy and warped, ebbing away from her grasp.

Within a matter of seconds Ib lost the image altogether and a dull ache in the back of her head followed with a vengeance. She winced, unsure of herself but something in the pit of her stomach was churning, which usually meant that something was wrong or her mother was attempting to cook eggs. Don't judge, her mother could bake cookies and casseroles, but give her eggs and you'll regret the fact that you have a stomach.

The teacher called for everyone's attention and dismissed them, calling out reminders about this and that as the students packed up. Ib slowly stood and packed her things, feeling dizzy and unsure as she made her way to lunch. The morning had really flown by.

"Hey, IB!" Amelia called, waving the girl over to the table excitedly. Ib sluggishly made her way over and sat down beside the hyper girl. "You'll never guess what happened earlier!" And with that Ib stopped paying attention. She really hadn't meant to, but something else was calling her attention, though she wasn't sure exactly what. It was like a whisper, a soft one that belonged to a sickly spirit that would probably turn out to be evil. Ib inwardly sighed at her own imagination. She should have stopped watching ghost movies with her mother sooner. They were corrupting her brain.

"-Are you listening? Hello?" Ib blinked at the hand in her face and turned to the culprit sheepishly, "Yes. No...I'm sorry." Amelia only shrugged it off, "You look wiped out! Did a teacher yell at you too?"

"No, Zhirnyy, it's just you. Don't assume that everyone shares your stupidity." Dmitri teased, sitting opposite of them. Amelia glared over at him, huffing before she shoved her sandwich into her mouth, muttering a few things here and there. "Didn't your mother ever teach you to chew with your mouth closed?" At that Amelia paused, staring down at the food in her hand, her jaw going slack. It was only for a second, but Ib knew she saw something flash across Amelia's face, but it happened too fast for her to properly put a name to it.

Dmitri, realizing he had said something wrong was about to apologize, but Amelia snapped back and threw the rest of her sandwich at him, making sure to spit on it first. She laughed obnoxiously when it hit him in the face, nearly tipping her chair backwards. Dmitri sputtered, whipping the offending food off his forehead.

As the two bickered Ib could feel something was wrong. There was a small pain in her stomach, which could be comparable to a small hole. It was an all over uncomfortable feeling, a sick feeling, and the dull aching of her head was not helping. Something was missing here, something she was forgetting, but what was it? Why did it hurt so much to think? What was she forgetting...Should she even want to remember? The others seemed fine, and wouldn't they notify her if something was wrong?

They were strangers. Yet, they had adopted her just the other day. Should she be so dependant on them? From this morning it's obvious that she barely knew them, but wasn't that normal? Being friends meant that you don't know a lot about each other at first, right? What were friends really? Why are people friends? Ib understood simple bonds, such as family bonds and professional ones, but why did friendship bonds exist? There were acquaintances, table friends, friends, best friends, not-friends-but-we'll-still-hang-with-you-friends, and there were probably more, but what was the point? How does one tell an acquaintance from a potential friend?

Ib shuddered.  _Potential friend_. Why was that familiar? Who had she thought that about? An image swam shallowly into the front of her eyes, but like earlier it faded before she could see it clearly, falling back into the dark sea, hiding itself far back into her mind's crannies. Unknowing, but feeling that she should was sickening and worrisome. Ib wasn't one to easily forget something that felt this important, but on the other hand she just wanted to curl into a ball and let it go. Whatever it was.

Ib blinked, coming out of her internal thoughts by a hand on her forehead. She glanced up, finding that this hand belonged to a lavender haired boy with a worried pair of eyes. It took a few more seconds for her to realize that those eyes were directed at her. It was only then that she realized that during her inward monologue of rhetorical questions that her head had ended up in her hands, her fingers gripping strands of her hair. Her ears picked up that the earlier bickering was gone, and Luno and Soaru had appeared at the table at some point. Garry retracted his hand with a frown, "You're burning up."

Amelia jumped up, "We should take her to the infirmary!"

Garry only locked eyes with Ib, "I'll take her."

Amelia was about to protest when the others threw her a pointed look. "Fine, but I better not hear that you guys were-" Before she could finish that thought Dmitri threw some fries at her. The effect was still the same, Garry blushed while Ib was having trouble connecting the dots. So, while in a hurry to avoid any further comments Garry carefully helped Ib to her feet and fast walked away.

Once in the hall Garry slowed his pace, staying close to Ib in case she fainted or needed assistance. Of course when he asked Ib had said she didn't need help, but it didn't take a psychologist to realize that she was exhausted. Garry cast her a worried glance. That morning she had been shocked, but fine altogether. Well, that had been a few hours ago, and illness can suddenly strike at any time, but Garry just had a feeling that Ib wasn't the type to suddenly become ill.

He rubbed the back of his head, wondering why he thought that. He had only met the brunette about three days ago and already he felt like he'd known her longer. He gently touched his other pocket, feeling the item inside. It was one thing to take guesses, but another thing entirely to feel like you knew a person. It was a strange feeling, one he never recalled having, not even with his parents or siblings. He inwardly sighed, remembering  _that_  conversation from yesterday. Talking with his eldest sister could get a little intimidating since she usually yelled a lot. He shook his head, trying not to dwell on that or else he would start to think about everything else, and he really didn't want to.

Due to not paying attention he walked straight into Ib when she paused-when had she gotten in front of him anyway?-resulting in a collision. He was about to retort when he blanked. Ib was nearly bent over, breathing heavily while holding her head, her hands grasping her shirt where her chest was. "Ib." He reached for her shoulder, only for his hand to grasp air.

"Garry. What is it?" Ib asked from up ahead, turning back slightly to look at him in confusion. Garry looked back at his hand in bewilderment. Nothing was there. "Nothing. Sorry, thought I saw something."

They resumed walking, but Garry was cautious. The other day when he had recommended that they come back and look he had but hadn't meant it. On one hand the painting and the things that happened that night couldn't be coincidence, and, if he was being honest, interesting, strange and, in a way, scary. Yet on the other hand as much as it was scary it was  _scary_. Not that scary movie thriller type, but the real deal, the true stories that scar, and that most don't live through. It was the scary that plagued nightmares. It was  _horrifying._  He didn't want to involve himself in that type of thing. He had seen Ib disappear and reappear from a puddle! If that didn't scare someone, then something was wrong with that person! This situation wasn't something to take lightly, it wasn't something to just run head first into. Maybe Ib had noticed, Garry wouldn't be surprised if she had, that he had mixed feelings. That something like this... wasn't normal.

Yet there was a feeling in the pit of his stomach that something was wrong and, though he would more than likely be reluctant, it would all lead back to then. There was a reason that Ib and him saw what they did. Garry believed in some coincidences, but not most. This was another exception. Something was wrong, he was missing something important. Something vital.

"Welcome back! My, I hope this really isn't becoming routine." The nurse, Charlotte, stated upon their entry. "What seems to be the problem?"

Garry looked at Ib who was looking at him, and he sighed inwardly before beginning to explain Ib's symptoms. Once finished Ib added a few things while throwing him a thankful look. He smiled back, showing her he wasn't bothered in the slightest by talking for her this once. She had, in a way, saved his butt back on the first day when that older lady had freaked him out.

The nurse went about taking Ib's temperature, taking her blood pressure, and a few other things while speaking with her. Ib replied in one syllable answers. The nurse finally left her alone, thinking for a moment before concluding her diagnosis. "Just a small bug, probably from stress and the new environment. You'll be fine by tomorrow, no doubt. I'm afraid I can't send you back to the dorms today for obvious reasons, so you'll have to rest here. You can head back at six."

The two nodded, Ib was unsure of the 'obvious' reasons, but went along with it anyway. "Someone should go with you though, just in case." "I'll do it." The two females looked over at Garry. "You don't have to." Ib replied softly, not wanting to be any more of a bother, but Garry digressed, promising to be back at six. There was no more resistance since he left, having to attend his classes that would start soon.

Ib rested on one of the cots, not bothering to draw the sterile sheets over her body. The room was warm and there was a slight breeze coming through the window that was both cold and warm at the same time. She faintly sighed, closing her eyes only to reopen them a few seconds later. Everytime she closed her eyes she saw the blurry image, only for it to disappear as she opened her eyes. No matter how much she tried to focus, Ib couldn't clear the image, couldn't scrape away the rust and stop it from slipping away.

As her eyes slowly became heavy and she was nearing that abyss known as sleep, she faintly saw, in the corner of the room,a shadowed figure dressed in red.

_O..e da.._

_I ...ell ...eep_

_a... ...ever ...ke ..._

_O..e da.._

_I ...ell ...eep_

_a... ...ever ...ke ..._

_O..e da.._

_I ...ell ...eep_

_a... ...ever ...ke ..._

_The words repeated and repeated, becoming raspier and raspier each time._

" _I'm Ka..e Gr..dl...gs, welcome to our fashion class."_

" _I'm Ka...Gr..dl..., welcome to our fashion class."_

" _I'm ..., welcome to our fashion class."_

_It grew fainter and softer, disappearing, but as it neared the voice became desperate to be heard._

" _I'm ..., welcome to our fashion class!"_

_It still was barely heard no matter how much it was screamed, the voice sobbing and crying. A ring flashed into view briefly before disappearing. What felt like minutes later another image appeared. A hand with the same ring that was holding thread and a needle, moving to pin and tuck material. Slowly the image moved up to reveal a girl with light, long brown hair and grey eyes. She smiled slowly, still moving the needle methodically, but as the image stilled to a stop it suddenly flashed, and the girls flawless face was covered in blood._

_Her once grey eyes were empty, pools of blood flowing down her rose tinted cheeks that had paled, looking nearly blue. Her rose coloured lips tinted vermillion, her teeth stained as she flashed them, letting out a scream. Her hands were bloody, her fingernails torn off, but something in her hands glinted. It was a needle. As she silently screamed the needle was raised, pulled back, and launched forwards on a clear path to the onlookers own eyes. As it neared, the onlooker screamed, watching as the needle came right for her._

Ib awoke with a start, a scream caught in her throat. She latched onto anything that she could find safety in, even if it were her own knees, but her knees shouldn't be this warm. As she looked up to find the heat source she was currently hugging she locked eyes with Garry who was staring back at her in surprise. Ib instantly let go and looked down, still in her own took a few deep breaths as Garry rubbed her back for her. It was silent, both feeling a bit awkward. Finally Ib calmed herself, feeling abashed and ashamed that she had acted like a baby, latching onto the first heat source she could find. It was unbecoming of her, and as a child there were only a small handful of times she had done anything like that.

"Are you alright? Did you have a nightmare?" She looked up at his worried tone. After a slight hesitation she nodded. "I see...You poor thing. I can't say I'm surprised...Being exposed to such frightful sights and Kate suddenly disappearing, you know?" Ib nodded, feeling better. Garry didn't know the half of it, but even if he couldn't see her dreams, he had seen what had happened a few days ago. It felt reassuring..."What did you just say?" Garry blinked. "About the frightful sights?" "No. The thing after." "The 'you know'?" "No. Before it. You said someone's name." Ib blinked, blurry images swimming around her head. "No I didn't...Didn't I?" Ib just stared at him. "Something's wrong."

Ib stood, "Nurse." The woman appeared a few seconds later looking weary and tired. "What did you mean earlier by "obvious reasons"?" The woman looked at her quizzically, "Why, I can't remember if I did or not. Didn't your stomach hurt too much for you to walk back on your own?"

Ib looked at Garry, his eyes narrowed in questioning. Ib turned back to the nurse, "Thank you." Then she left, a sudden urge pulling her towards the door. She heard the nurse and Garry call out to her, but she didn't stop, couldn't stop. Her legs were walking on their own accord and seemed to be leading her, hopefully, to the answer. While walking a small memory came back to her. She had had pencil smudges on her this morning, which meant she had been drawing at some point during the night, which wasn't usually odd, though spaced out, but her legs seemed to think otherwise. Something was leading her to the dorms, something was telling her that the answer, no matter good or bad, was there. It was a strange feeling, one that terrified her but enthralled her at the same time. It must be how a detective felt when nearing the verdict of the case, that sink or swim moment that decides all, the anticipation, the adrenaline.

It was there in her own dorm room that her feet slowed, allowing her to chose the course they would take. As she focused Ib left the door open, not remembering to close it as she peered around the room. Her instincts were screaming for her to find the odd thing out. What, in her room, was not in its proper place, what didn't belong. Ib searched, looking at her table and chair, on her bed, in the closet, and through her bag, but nothing stuck out, but then she looked at the curtain which was awry just a bit. It was perfect for letting moonlight in.

Ib moved over to the window to fix the curtain when her foot came into contact with an object that should not be on the floor. She carefully bent down on her knees and picked it up, her eyes widening as she looked at the drawing. It was decorated in thick, black shading, but in the center was a smaller figure, giving the picture a sense of distance, was a girl being heavily obscured by the shading, but more importantly was the ring that was larger and in front, giving off the image that it had fallen from the girl's hand while she was being dragged off into the dark.

As she continued to stare Ib felt a shooting pain in the back of her head. It was white hot and long, broadcasting images of a girl with light, long brown hair was was in a cascading waterfall braid, grey eyes that looked at her as an equal, and a ring on her finger.

" _You're a helper, right? Well, helpers are a bit different than the regular students in this class. You'll be graded like everyone else on drawing for designs, but you won't be making them. Helpers are just what they sound like, they can help others with design ideas and you'll probably be used as a mannequin, but don't worry about that yet."_

" _Raina, you can't just grab someone like that."_

" _It fits quite well, you look really nice Ib."_

" _Sorry about this, but at least you've gotten the first one over with."_

" _You'll be graded on submitting designs, helping out others as their 'mannequin', small side projects, and modeling in showcases or at the cafe."_

" _Designs that pass are featured in showcases or at fashion shows we throw at festivals or at the cafe. We even do charity benefits, or auction off outfits. You'll be assigned to a group that will be debuting their design and wear it for course it would be cruel to just throw you onstage, so you and a few others will take some walking classes when there isn't much to do or as the shows get closer. The drama department has a few students who will be helping out to teach you, so you'll be well prepared before the show."_

"Ib, right now this probably is nerve-wrecking and scary, but you won't be alone. We'll all help, you just need to ask. If it get's too much, don't be afraid to speak up."

"I'm  _Kate Gridlings_ , welcome to our fashion class."

When Garry finally caught up with the girl she was sitting on the floor in her room, her back to him. "Ib." He hesitantly called out as he approached her. She moved just a fraction, indicating that she knew he was there. "Her name is Kate."

"Who?"

"The girl who's missing. Her name is Kate Gridlings. She was proclaimed missing this morning."

Garry gave her a quizzical look until he slowly started to remember. This morning everyone had been upset because of someone named Kate going missing, she was a girl in one of Ib's classes. "I think...I remember." He froze, trying to process just why he had forgotten. "This doesn't make sense! Why had I forgotten? No one else had said anything... Why...What is going on?"

Ib stood up. "I'm going back."

Garry looked at her. "You don't mean- Ib, those two may not even be connected!"

"Then explain it to me. This morning everyone was solemn at the news, but now it's back to normal like nothing happened. The time frame isn't right. Even the nurse couldn't remember. Somethings wrong. I..I don't draw like this normally and why Kate? Something is wrong."

Garry hesitated, thinking it over before nodding. "You're right that something is wrong, and this may or may not be connected to it, but we can at the very least check it out...Just in case."

"You don't have to come."

"And leave you all alone? No way! You could get hurt!"

Ib nodded, "Then we're going." Garry nodded. "We're going."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does anyone else feel that there wasn't enough initiative for Ib to decide it had something to do with the school? Yeah, not that I'm looking through it does seem that way, BUT I have a reason for this. Explanation: Chapter 2, the ending of chapter 5, and the fact that these things are even happening. They're really just taking a shot in the dark, because for all they know she really is missing because she ran off with her boyfriend.


	7. Chapter 7

The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things,

but their inward significance.

-Aristotle

 

Small giggles resounded through the air in lofty play, gliding and swirling amongst the nonexistent breeze that wafted through the halls. Small shadows took to their hiding spots amongst the light fixtures, slowly ebbing their way out, leaking onto the pristine, shiny floor that never dulled. The tiny pitter patter of footsteps is what kept most back, for if you tread in the wake of temptation there is no more hope for survival. It's consumes all in it's aftermath, sparing none a lingering hope or wishful prayer.

Honestly. They are all mad here. There is no escaping from the puppeteer; not even scissors can cut the strings. All will fall into the play soon, but tonight it has fully begun. Yes, audience, it's time for act one. Here's a warning now-Tread carefully on solid ground. Legs do not walk quite so well when the earth is hollow, not even when the water is shallow. Dive deep into the unknown abyss, but don't worry now, there are always stranger things to behold.

* * *

All was silent in the hallways. The few straggling students had long since left once the clock neared eight; the time that even the cafeteria closed for, curfew. It was a strict rule that no one should wander the building after seven, only stay in the cafeteria or go back to the dorms. So, it shouldn't be a surprise that the halls were quiet or that they were empty. Yet, these halls were not void of life in the slightest, even if it was only fabricated. Yes, the human mind creates palpable, tangible images that trick their host, but are these spectators lurking around the eye's farthest corners really only a concoction of delusions?

Ib was not sure herself, but as she waited for the eight o'clock bell to chime the images of all the strange happenings reverberated endlessly in her head. However, this only furthered her confidence in that whatever was taking place had to be linked to the first time she and Garry arrived. Ib stared at her palm, which had a band-aid on it from the cut she got the other day. It was only now that she realized that the hand she had seen when the glass cut her was most likely Kate's. The girl was proclaimed missing less than twenty-four hours after Ib saw it after all.

Idly she sat in the broom closet for another three minutes until the clock rang out, the sound echoing through the building. Ib slowly opened the door a crack and checked to make sure all was clear before fully leaving the small, cleaner smelling closet behind. Garry and her had decided to meet up by the entrance to the building, a safe place if they were caught by any of the staff. Besides, they both knew where it was. Of course, the main challenge was going to be getting there since that one older lady had found them when they first arrived. In all honesty, she could be on duty at night or making rounds every so and so. Even if she was patrolling she wouldn't have to spot Ib since her loud, thunderous steps would give the girl away. Though, this was not really her fault as the ground was marble.

Ib was nearing the entrance rather smoothly when a cough caught her attention. She hesitated before turning to the left and following the erratic hacking of the lungs only for it to stop right as she laid eyes on a painting. Ironically, the plaque underneath named the art to be " _The Coughing Man._ " Ib stood there for a few moments longer, waiting for the man to start coughing again, but it was a vain wait. After some time she finally decided to head back in the direction of the meeting area. Nothing significant happened during that walk and she found that she had arrived before Garry had.

While waiting besides a plant Ib closed her eyes, trying to relax. It was her decision to come and she wouldn't chicken out no matter what. She heard footsteps coming towards her and ducked down so that the plant camouflaged her from sight. She peered through some of the leaves, watching to see who it was that was coming; it was only Garry. Ib moved out of her hiding spot, nearly giving Garry a heart attack from the surprise. "Well, I'm not too sure on what to do now that we're here."

Ib stood there. She had forgotten about that part.

"I guess we could take a look around or something." Garry supplied and Ib nodded in agreement, "Now where to start? We should stay clear of the office for now incase that lady is here still. Hey, why don't we check on that one painting with the puddle and hands?"

With a destination in mind they set off, taking detours to avoid any areas near the office. When they finally came across the painting nothing happened, not one thing was out of place. Garry sighed as he gave up on staring the painting down. From the looks of it Ib wasn't doing much better. The two stood before the painting, thinking long and hard on why nothing was happening and if they were simply doing something wrong.

After that failure they ended up wandering about for a time, waiting to hear or see something unnatural. Still, nothing showed itself. "Maybe we just came at the wrong time." Garry suggested, moving to look at his watch. He froze for a few seconds, staring at it. Ib moved to glance at it too, and though they had been wandering the school for nearly forty minutes his watch still read 8 O'clock. Well, at least they knew  _something_ was going on.

"Maybe we just can't see them," Ib stated. Garry looked over at her curiously, "You mean they're hiding?"

"Not exactly, but it could be that they can't interact. For the last two days they could have been visual to us because they had the energy...Maybe even the means."

"Wait, do you mean that whatever these things are only appeared to us by mistake? When you put it like that it almost sounds like they were after Kate." Garry theorized, trying to wrap his mind fully around it all, "And if they're too weak then maybe we have to cross over to their plane."

"It's only a theory." Ib reminded him. "Hey, Ib, this sounds like a bad ghost movie." Garry commented. The guy was pretty sure that they probably weren't dealing with something that would end in an exorcism or demon possession...Hopefully.

They ceased walking as they came to the hallway that was closed off for construction. Ib paused, staring down the dim hallway before turning towards it and walking over the tape. Garry walked next to her, remarking on how Ib had come here earlier the day before. They passed by the canvas on the ground, only pausing to confirm that it was still blank. As they descended down the long hall both Garry and Ib noticed that the lights were no longer dim. Instead, they were nearly absent altogether and they had passed the last window some time ago. Now when they peered down the hall they saw only fluid, inky shadows weaving through the domain silently.

"Does this hall ever end?" Garry chirped nervously, casting a glance behind him. Ib did not pause, but after a few seconds she couldn't hear Garry's footsteps anymore. She looked behind her, but no one was there or even in sight. When she looked forwards the chasm had consumed her sight and the world with it. Walking was comparable to floating for she could no longer tell if gravity was present. Each step could be her last as she wouldn't be able to see anything that may be in her way. Afraid of being lost like this Ib walked in, what she believed to be, a straight line for a very long time. Inwardly she wanted to cry out for Garry, hopeful that he would respond and find that one of them had taken a wrong turn somewhere.

Ib quickened her pace more, feeling something cold moving across her feet and disappearing. It felt like mice were scurrying around, only in this case they would be dead and wet. Something moved through her hair and her arm went up to swat it away, only to hit something much too large and extremely cold. A feeling of dread sprung up in her chest and she recognized that it was those hands. They blended in with the surrounding, making them unrecognizable to her. Ib began to run, swatting the groping hands away from her, but that did not stop them from reaching out to her. Their attempts were nearly cries of anguish, mischief, and loneliness. They pulled at her hair, her limbs, and tried to make her yield so that she would never leave them, never escape from them again.

And soon, much like Alice who fell down the rabbit hole, the ground that once resided beneath her feet was gone, replaced with absolutely nothing. It nearly hurt, the feeling of her stomach plummeting and then feeling too light, as if it were not existent. It was nauseous inducing and horrifying. Ib could feel her limbs try to branch out for some form of stable ground, for something to hold on to, but the wish evaded her, mocking her desperation. Still, she panicked and searched for something to grab on to. Ib was not going to die here...wherever here was. She was going to live to see the end of this. She made a promise to herself before she was accepted to St. Rose, a wish that she would have to pray for, work at, and learn to do. She would learn to speak up and create friendships with others. And now while she was falling, Ib added on to this promise; she would not die in some school that she had only attended for two days and she was going to endure till the end of the year.

Still tense, but feeling just a speck better Ib could faintly see rays of light coming from behind her. She turned to look at the source and found that the light was coming from something below her. Without hesitation the chasm stopped dragging her down, instead allowing her to descend softly, her feet landing on something akin to a floor. Looking up she slowly approached the glowing object. It did not dim, but Ib's eyes could now clearly see that the glow was emanating from a large rose. The beautiful flower was guarded by a thick thorny stem and the vermillion petals were nearly bigger than Ib's own head. It was a breathtaking sight and Ib wanted nothing more than to have her sketchbook so that she could draw it, to imprint the sight into her mind even if only through a medium that would never be able to portray how deadly the rose was.

Consequently, Ib had been so enraptured that she had not noticed that she had reached out to touch the rose, and the thorns bit at her fingers, drawing small specks of blood that dripped only once and this single drop seemingly disappeared, swallowed by the thorns. Right before her own eyes the flower began to move, growing to tower over her before its thorns surged to take root, ripping the ground apart as if it were nothing more than flimsy paper. Ib fell forward as a root popped out of the ground underneath her. Her hands came into contact with the thorns, but even though she wanted to move away the thorns were better than being skewered by rapid roots.

Ib watched the scene before her in silent amazement, gasping in surprise when the stem began to grow, bringing her along with it. She held on tightly as it kept ascending for an unknown period of time, but that time felt much too short for soon it stopped and when Ib looked up the petals were now growing. As they grew larger the stem began to start yellowing until finally it collapsed altogether. The strangest thing happened right after that. Instead of falling back down, Ib began to fall...up.

The red petals fluttered around her, blinding her view from almost anything else. They swarmed around in a flurry as they grew darker, but then they encased Ib within their folds. It was almost comforting, like a safe cocoon. It was warm too, a gentle fire with the potential to magnify its production of heat into that of raging chaos. These feelings resulted in Ib being nearly asleep, comparable to a caterpillar's long sleep inside its life altering temporary home. But as her eyelids began to shut on their own accord Ib swore that the petals began to shine and glow.

* * *

All of a sudden Ib awoke with a start, breathing uneasily from whatever it was she had awoken from. She looked around; finding only the hallway she had started off on, but the difference was that there was a door in front of her. Ib was at the end of the hallway! Once on her feet she grasped the old knob and stared at the door for a moment, noting how there was something strange about it, before opening it cautiously. From the looks of it the room was just a link between other passages on that side of the building, but while walking through the archway into another room Ib noticed a door slightly awry.

She opened the door, but the room was pitch black. When she took a very small step inside the room to find the light switch her foot was submerged in water. While looking down at her wet shoe, Ib saw something swimming around in the navy blue water. However, before she could attempt to turn back she was pulled under.

It's beautiful; water, yet so dangerous. All the oceans in the world and seas are beautiful with ranging colours of blue and strange, dark fish that could only be imagined or that lived in the deepest reaches of oceans could be seen swimming around in such dark waters. The strangest part was that Ib could have sworn that this wasn't the first time she had seen some of these wondrous creatures, it was almost like an insistent memory just at the back of her mind.

Ib looked out through the water, knowing that there had to be an exit somewhere. She swam towards the surface for air, but she was not able to reach it. As the seconds passed Ib was sinking, and the surrounding water was growing a darker shade as if it were an abyss inside the sea. Ib was now sinking to the deepest reaches of this body of water and just as she could no longer hold her breath she was flung out into something chillingly cold. She breathed in for several minutes after hitting the floor before sitting up and looking back at where she just came from, almost gasping as a large creature's eye was staring at her from the other side of the water. The whole body of water she was just in looked like an aquarium only there was no glass, the water just stayed in that shape.

Ib stood up and looked opposite the aquarium. She was in a regular room, with the only light source being a blue hue from the aquarium. There was a door straight ahead and Ib decided to go on ahead, hoping that she would meet up with Garry if he had already made it this far. When Ib walked out of the door she was flabbergasted to see that nearly everything looked almost identical to where she had been before her deep sea adventure. The only differences was the artwork on the walls and that the walls and floors did not need major renovations. In fact the floor had a rollout like carpet look and the wood bordering the carpet was rich in colour and even sturdy.

A shiver coursed its way up Ib's spine, prompting her to turn to look down all three corridors. She stood at the intersection of the three passages, unsure of which way she should go. A small part of her wanted to go back into the other room and try to find a way back. She dismissed this thought right away, remembering that this was her idea so she couldn't back down. Ib carefully studied each passage, carefully trying to make a decision. In the end, Ib decided on going left.

As she neared the end of the hallway Ib could see a small table in the distance. Faintly Ib could make out a vase that oddly looked like the one she had seen the day prior, only that one had been smashed into pieces. Ib stared at the vase, picking it up and swirling the water inside of it. Carefully, she set it back down on the desk and turned to leave it when her eye caught a passageway on her right which hadn't been there before.

Cautiously Ib moved through the darkened doorway, unsure if it was safe to venture in or not. Her fears were quelled when she spotted something glowing on the floor; a red rose. Placing one foot in front of the other Ib made her way towards the flower. She bent down and faintly touched it, her hand hesitantly ghosting the petals. Taking a deep breath, Ib gingerly picked up the rose. She twirled it between her thumb and index finger, analyzing the flower. The thorns were nearly dull stubs and didn't hurt to touch, the petals were a ripe crimson, and there were fifteen petals in total.

Something black moving across Ib's shoes caused her to slowly stare ahead at a large painting of a woman wearing a white turtleneck. Her hair was a graying black and strands of this hair were flowing from the painting. Ib gasped in terror, taking a step back, but the strands tripped her, causing her to fall on her butt. The girl in the painting slowly opened her slitted eyes, staring at Ib as a wicked grin etched its way across her face.

**When** the  **rose** rots **, so**  will  **you** rot  **away.**

Ib's hand came into contact with something cold behind her. Her head swiveled to look at what it was, but was relieved to find that it was only a small blue painted metal key. When Ib looked back at the painting the woman was gone. Fearfully she looked around the room for the woman, just in case. Ib quickly stood, backing up towards the door, never keeping her eyes in one spot for more than a few seconds. Once in the doorway Ib turned around, relieved to see the desk and vase just the way she left it.

Suddenly, a hand placed itself on her shoulder. Black hairy tendrils cascaded over Ib's shoulder and she could faintly make out another hand coming closer to her face.

You  **and the** rose  **are** unified.  **Know** the  **value** of  **your** own  **life**.

Ib shivered at the words, but stayed perfectly still and scrunched her eyes closed. The feeling of hair on her skin suddenly disappeared as did the feeling of hands on her. Ib opened her eyes and turned slowly around. The dark room and even the archway were no longer there, as if it all was a nightmare she had just awoken from. However, Ib knew this was no nightmare. The rose and key in her hand was proof enough that it hadn't been an illusion.

'Know the value of your own life.' Ib didn't really understand what that meant, but something inside of her was telling her that she should keep her rose safe from harm. Ib now looked down at the key, deciding that the blue key would probably leaf to her next destination. Now she just needed to find the door that this key unlocked.

Ib arrived back at the intersection and went to her right, but only found a dead end with a table. Upon going straight ahead from the intersection Ib found the door that was linked with the key she had. She took a few steps in, catching some writing on the wall, but was hit by something before she could possibly read the sign.

Ib stayed on the floor, but turned her head to see what had just pushed her. Her eyes widened when she saw a black hand protruding from the wall and waving around, almost in an attempt to hit something. Ib crawled away, moving towards the plaque before standing up, wincing when her knee ached. Ib examined it briefly, deciding it was no big deal when she noticed a red petal on the floor. Ib counted the petals on her rose and realized that she was now missing one. Ib paused, thinking it over. There were fifteen petals until she was hit by the hand, which caused her to lose one. So, whenever she was hit by one of those things she would lose a petal. What would happen if she ran out of petals? Ib got the feeling that if such a thing did happen that it wouldn't be good. This means that she couldn't lose all the petals, ever.

Ib looked at the plaque and sweat dropped once she read it:  _Beware of the Edges_. Well, that would have been much more useful three minutes ago. Ib looked back down the narrow path where the hand had hit her, thinking of the best way to go about this. The message warned of the edges, so if she stayed in the middle of the path then she should be able to avoid from being hit. Ib took a few deep breathes, readying herself to fast walk down the hallway. It wasn't a long hallway since she could easily see the other end of it. And there wasn't anything like a door on the side walls, so she wouldn't have to worry about unexpected creatures coming through the doorway.

Taking one more deep breath Ib took off down the hall, keeping her shoulders hunched close to her. Dark hands erupted from the wall, trying to grab at her. Ib was slightly relieved when she realized that the hands could only reach out a certain distance, but was not happy when something grabbed at her ankle just as she stepped out of the hallway. She slightly yelped as she fell onto the floor, putting her arms out to catch herself. Ib managed to keep her rose from being squished, thus resulting in not losing a petal, but her momentary relief was fleeting.

Something was dragging her back into the hallway. Ib could feel their cold grip on her right ankle, their desperate clawing. Ib looked back and nearly screamed. There was a large creature the colour of a chasm and it had red glowing eyes. Multitudes of hands squirmed in the creature's shadow, grabbing at Ib's leg. Ib tried to crawl away, kicking at their hold, but nothing was working. As she was being dragged back Ib could only panic and try to escape while her mind raced.

Ib had just wanted something different for herself. She wanted to leave her home where she felt like an outcast in order to discover what she really wanted to do, to gain experience. More importantly, she wanted to make sure that she had a future doing the only thing she felt talented in; drawing. Ib barely had social skills or any other talents at all. She couldn't even call out for help when she desperately needed it, but who would hear her?

Ib had no idea as to what became of Garry, and to be honest she hadn't been too concerned about him. However, now she wanted him here with her. He probably wouldn't have any idea as to what to do, but his mere presence would make her feel better. Ib didn't like to be alone, not even at night, and especially not here in this strange place. She didn't want to die alone, not ever.

Ib dug her nonexistent nails into the carpet, trying to resist the force dragging her. Not really thinking about it she lurched onto her side and swatted at the hands on her leg, "Stop!" Oddly enough the hands receded, but Ib didn't waste time in watching what was becoming of them. The first chance she got, Ib jumped up and ran away from the hall, not looking back.

Ib only stopped once she had run in circles for a solid minute, breathing harshly when she arrived at the accursed hallway again. Taking a few more steps back from it Ib looked at the two other passageways that looped around to connect again at this intersection. Feeling a bit shaky, Ib decided to just find a door that she may need to go through to continue on. She just needed to keep moving and be more careful of warnings.

After passing various paintings Ib finally arrived at a door, but this door was pretty strange. It was made of six empty frames in a straight down line. There was a knob, so this had to really be a door. Ib stared at the empty frames in thought. 'If there are six frames then that must mean something must go into each frame. Maybe it's a sequence, like a story made of paintings.' Ib carefully went through the two looping hallways, surveying the paintings carefully. There were six frames, and if she guessed right and it was a story sequence then the paintings had to have something in common.

Ib passed a bumble bee, a butterfly, a ladybug, and then a painting titled  _Prologue_. Ib paused at the last one, staring at it and then at the others after it that were titled  _Chapter One, Chapter Two,_ and  _Final Chapter_. Ib plucked them off the wall. Now she only needed two more. Ib walked the halls for another minute before arriving back at the butterfly. Ib then plucked the painting off the wall, feeling exasperated for not realizing that the whole sequence was that of a butterfly's life cycle. Still, she needed one more painting.

After thoroughly searching the hall Ib still could not find the last one that she needed. However, carrying the paintings was beginning to hurt her arms. After arriving back at the door Ib decided that she might as well start putting the paintings in the frames, perhaps it would be useful in seeing something she may be missing. Starting at the top, Ib placed the butterfly in the frame, deciding that it was more like the summary and because it wasn't like the others in that there was a process to them. For the next four frames she placed the  _Prologue, Chapter One, Chapter Two,_ and  _The Final Chapter_  in their proper order. However, once she placed them all in the correct order the last empty frame began to change. A strange web began to spin through it, writing out  _Epilogue_.

Ib stared at it in question before a butterfly fluttered past her and into the web by mistake. Ib stared at the butterfly as it struggled to escape from the sticky thread in vain. Feeling horrible for the poor insect, Ib bent down and reached forward to untangle it when a long, pointy black leg that could only belong to a spider cut through a small hole in the web. Right before her eyes, Ib could only watch as the butterfly was about to be devoured by the spider. However, as Ib watched the butterfly continue to squirm in a panic she was reminded of her own struggling just a few minutes ago. In essence, Ib was much like this butterfly; both of them were caught in a web. Yet, Ib couldn't stand the thought of not being able to do anything, and if she couldn't do anything then she could only hope that something would save her...Maybe that's what she needed to do, Ib needed to save this butterfly.

To Ib, this epiphany made sense, and so she quickly began to work to try and free the butterfly. The spider bit her hand by mistake just as she destroyed the web around the poor creature. Once it was in her hands, Ib moved to the side and was going to finished taking the webs on the winged bug when the locked door buckled from the weight of something slamming against it. Ib slowly got to her feet, taking slow steps backwards as the door was repeatedly slammed against. It was silent in the hall for a mere second before the door flung open just as the spider slammed into it again.

Ib stared at the large insect in disbelief. It was bigger than a small table and it's eight legs were longer than the average second grader. It looked directly at Ib, all of its eyes nearly glowering when it saw her, and then it lunged at her. Ib dodged to the left and ran around, the spider chasing after her, its many legs allowing it to catch up with her effortlessly. Ib continued running around, trying to think of a way out of the situation. She soon arrived back at the now broken door and ran inside without hesitation.

However, the room was covered in thick, dark crates that reached the ceiling. Ib could hear the spider's legs scuttling closer towards the doorway and she hurriedly searched for anywhere to hide. Her eyes landed on a small opening in the bottom most crate that was just big enough for her to get through. Without any other options Ib got down on her hands and knees and crawled into the opening, following the narrow path. Cobwebs and dust clinged to Ib's hair and clothes. The ground was grainy and covered in dirt. It smeared onto Ib's exposed hands and knees, layering them in a spotted layer of filth that made her hands slip as she crawled.

Ib turned corners, slithered on the ground under lower crates, sneezed so loudly that some of the crates nearly fell on her, and still she had not found her way out of the labyrinth of crates, or even a section that would allow her to sit up straight. Ib would have sighed, but for one the dust would get into her mouth and two, she couldn't show her exasperation by sighing. Ib constantly reminded herself that she was the one who crawled in her to escape a giant spider, so she should be grateful...In a way.

Ib turned another narrow corner, lightly bumping into a few crates when she heard a rattling above her. Ib looked back in time to see crates starting to topple over. Without another look back Ib began to crawl faster, trying to reach the end of this labyrinth before she was crushed by a bunch of wood. She could see a light at the end of the tunnel she was in and lunged for it, scraping her hand when her torso fell a foot, causing her to somersault so that she was sitting up straight when she landed.

Ib waited for her dizzy spell to pass before taking notice of her surroundings. For one she was sitting up properly and passage was no longer narrow and low to the ground. Upon looking up, Ib saw that the crates were in straight rows that created a one way passage. Ib got to her feet and stretched her arms and legs that had been so cramped for a while. She began to follow the crates, careful to not touch them in the slightest just in case they were sensitive. As she was walking, Ib happened to look down and see something rather peculiar.

There were other footprints that did not belong to her.

 


	8. Chapter 8

 

> Wherever art appears, life disappears.
> 
> -Robert Motherwell

 

They were there. Small, unheard wisps of incomplete conversations were inscribed here, there, everywhere. The void of nothing was once before broken, shattered into bits, but for how long has repose waited? How long has it been since the wisps died, that the void grew back like moss on a stone? Perhaps forever ago, or even none at all, but one thing is inevitably true: souls once ascended here on a journey much like Ib's own. Perhaps, they too searched for a way out through here, but did they ever reach the end of the lonely labyrinth's grasp?

Perhaps.

Ib followed the footprints forwards, hoping that they led to a way out. As she walked Ib took notice that most of the footprints were bigger than her own or just about the same size. A part of her wished that this meant she was not alone, but a larger part of her was ashamed that she wished such a thing on anyone. Still, Ib, admittedly, did not like to be alone. Not one single bit. Of course, Ib had grown used to being by herself, but others were always around her or in the vicinity whether they be downstairs or in the same room as her.

No, Ib did not fear being  _alone_. She feared  _isolation_. Which may be better or even worse than just being alone since no one was around. Another human's presence was missing, gone. This is why Ib took such comfort in these footprints. They symbolized that others, even if they were gone, had once been where she was. Besides, Ib still did not know where Garry had gone, but she was not vain enough to believe that only she was meant to be here. No, Garry was probably somewhere in this strange place or...Well, Ib did not know. Perhaps he was still back in the hallway where they had somehow gotten separated from one another.

In any case, Garry was not here with her at the moment. Meaning Ib would have to carry on until she found a way back. Which probably would take some time seeing as this place was like a large maze. Ib sighed inwardly as she reached a crossroad. The tracks extended in both directions, which means that one passage had to lead to a dead end, but which one was it? Ib analyzed the tracks for any indication of which path she should take, but it was a vain attempt. Ib considered herself to be moderate if not proficient in her knowledge, but that did not require learning how to hunt in this day and age. Instead, she chose the wisest decision and went with the path that was eroded with the largest amount of footprints.

Ib continued to follow the path, making sure not to bump into any of the crates on some of the more narrow turns. However, she soon reached a dead end. The footprints ended at the base of a large wall made of stone. How peculiar. It was much taller than Ib was, but did not reach as high as the crates. Ib looked back at the footprints, noticing how they all reached the wall and disappeared. Ib looked behind her at the footprints. She had noticed that as she grew closer towards this dead end that the footprints weren't so heavily predominant. There were also no footprints leading back to the way she came from.

Looking back at the wall now Ib moved in front of it, slowly taking her hand and placing it on one of the stones that jutted out. She pulled on it, testing how sturdy it was. She looked up, eyeing each of these stones wearily before standing on her tiptoes so that she could grasp a few of the jutting stones above her. She clung to them as she moved her feet so that they too rested on the stones. Tentatively, Ib began to climb up the wall, trying her best not to look directly down. As she was nearing the top of the wall when her foot slipped. The sudden lurch threw Ib off balance and she would have plummeted to the ground if something had not grabbed her hand at that moment.

Red met blue. "Hurry, you are really heavy." The girl grunted out, trying to pull Ib over the wall. Snapping out of her stupor Ib grasped the edge of the wall and pulled herself over. The two fell into nothingness, the other girl laughing for some reason, before landing in a strange cushioned chair. Ib felt the wind knocked out of her as the seat literally began to swallow her, the red cushioned fabric closing in on her.

A hand grasped her own and pulled her out before she could suffocate. Ib took a few breathes, glancing away from this  _Wine Sofa,_  if the plaque was correct, to look at the blonde girl before her. Ib was quite surprised to see that it was a young female child with blonde hair. Ib couldn't help but notice that the hem of her green dress was singed in some areas, and her blue ribbon was too. Ib looked back at the girl's face and met the girl's blue eyes, which were analyzing Ib also.

They stood there in silence, nearly in complete awkwardness before Ib decided that, being the older one, she should probably start of a conversation. "Hello, I'm Ib."

The young girl's eyes widened a fraction before she quickly covered her slip-up with a large smile, "My names Mary!"

"What are you doing here, Mary?" The girls faced morphed into puzzlement and Ib swore something else flashed across her face, but it was too quick for her to see what it was.

"Well, um...I'm stuck here." She replied, frowning slightly.

'Stuck here?' Ib thought to herself, wondering just how such a thing was even possible. Perhaps Mary was also lost like she was?

"Are you looking to leave, huh, Ib?" Mary asked curiously, staring up into the girl's blank face. Ib nodded in response. Mary turned around, hiding her frown as she put on a faux enthusiastic tone, "I know where an exit is," Mary put on a smile as she turned towards the other girl, "I can take you there."

Ib stared at her. "What about you?"

"I can't leave here, yet." Ib wasn't too keen on why but she shivered at the girl's words, something telling her that they were foreboding.

Mary began to start walking, leaving Ib no choice but to follow her. However, Ib was surprised to learn that Mary really did know her way around the strange place. She would point down certain halls and worn Ib of things that would attack her or if there were just dead ends. Mary also tended to ask Ib a myriad of questions, such as what colour of blue the sky really was, the colour of houses, and about food for some odd reason.

However, only one question really stood out to Ib. They were ascending a few flights of stairs when Mary suddenly turned towards her, nearly causing Ib to bump into her. "Hey, Ib, did you come here with someone else?"

Ib looked up at her and nodded.

"Who was it? Were they a boy or girl?" Mary inquired curiously.

"A boy named Garry." Ib missed the way Mary's eyes narrowed and the dark expression that crossed her face.

"Oh, that must be nice. Having a friend. Do you know where he is right now?" Ib was oblivious to the edge in the younger girl's tone, for the brunette had just realized that she should ask the girl about Kate.

"No, not currently. Mary, have you seen a girl named Kate here?" The girl began to think about it, tapping her chin with her index finger. Ib waited in the deafening silence until Mary's face lit up with recognition, "Yeah! I think I heard it once or twice, but I don't know where she is right now. Maybe your other  _friend_  has already met up with her."

"Perhaps..." Ib started, but she was interrupted by Mary's giggles. "Come on, Ib!" The girl began to run up the remaining steps, "Last one up is a rotten egg!" Ib gave a faint smile at the child's antics before following right after her.

They had reached the top of the stairs where a door was waiting. Mary took out a key from her pocket and was about to unlock it. "Mary, why are you stuck here?" Ib asked, the question bothering her. Mary froze in place, but didn't turn around when she responded, "I want to tell you a story. Will you listen, Ib?" Mary didn't wait for the girl to respond before launching into her story.

"Once upon a time there was a girl who was born in a small country house. Her father was a very passionate painter who cared very much for his children, and he created a place for all of them to live, but as time went on he became more and more distant, wanting fame more than anything else. He began to visit his children less and less, and at some point he disappeared. His children were taken away and his daughter was separated from the others, forced to remain concealed from everyone else. However, the children still had the place Father created for them, but it slowly began to change. Isolated and alone, the young girl grew more curious about the outside world, but she could no longer leave. However, she was able to reunite with the others by mere coincidence, but she was different from them. She wanted to leave that place for the outside world."

At this point Mary placed the key in the lock, "And it just so happened that she got what she wanted. Two others had happened across their place and befriended the girl, but in the end they betrayed the girl and left her alone, among  _other things_." Mary flicked her wrist, unlocking the door.

"What happened to the girl, Mary?" Ib quietly asked. Mary giggled from before her, "Silly, Ib. Don't you know? She burned."

"That's terrible." Mary paused, looking back at Ib silently. Ib took this as a push to explain herself.

"That they burned her. I do not know the circumstances which they were in, but why would they do such a thing? Maybe they had a reason, but to do something so awful..."

Mary turned back around, silently fidgeting with the door knob. In a small voice she asked, "Do you really mean that, Ib?"

"Yes," Ib stated. She wasn't too sure as to what was going on, but Mary seemed terribly troubled by something. Ib gently reached out to touch Mary's shoulder when she saw flames lash out from the girls body. Ib gasped, watching in horror as the girl was completely consumed by enormous flames that racked her small body. "M-Mary..." However, Ib blinked and the entire image was gone, a mere fabrication that possibly had stemmed from the girl's story.

Ib, in her panicked moment, had not heard Mary muttering until then, but she could only catch the very ends of the words. "Are you alright?" Ib asked, unsure of what to do.

Mary kept her back to Ib, "It's not fair. It's not fair!" She shouted, one fist banging on the door before she turned to stare at Ib, her blue eyes filled with anger, her face pinched. She screamed and cried, stomping her foot as she wailed. Ib could only stare in absolute horror at the girl's unprompted temper tantrum. Not sure as to what to do, Ib awkwardly could only stand there. However, as she stared at Mary's crumpled formation of a ball she was reminded of herself. Ib, when alone in her house, would curl in on herself in silent fear. She had been lonely, and Mary, if she was stuck here like she said, was also probably lonely.

Ib sat down besides Mary, letting her back rest against the door as she watched Mary. Once seated close enough to the girl for both their comfort, Ib hesitantly reached out a hand to pat Mary's head. The girl's crying slowly died into sniffles and then she leaned back against the door next to Ib, her eyes still puffy from crying. Slowly, the girl leaned against Ib in silence.

"Another girl did this for me not to long ago," Mary confided in a small, unbalanced voice as Ib soothingly ran her fingers through Mary's hair. "She was taller than you and she sang me a song, which made me really happy. She was really nice, but I'm afraid of seeing her again."

Ib felt obligated to ask why, but she needn't for Mary continued on anyway, "She was hurt while she was here and someone else got hurt. I was too late to help her any." She paused for a few minutes, staring off at something Ib could not see. When she did speak again her voice was stable, but still rather small and sad. "If you want, Ib, I can still take you to the exit."

" **There's no need for such a** _ **rash**_ **decision."**

The two girls froze at the voice, a dark shadow crossing over Mary's face as she jumped to her feet. Ib looked ahead of her at the staircase where a cloaked figure now stood, also getting to her feet, only slowly.

" **So, this is** _ **Ib**_ **, huh?"**

Ib was frozen as the cloaked figure was suddenly in front of her, grabbing her chin and forcing her to look up at him. "Ib! Let her go!" Mary yelled somewhere behind her. The figure chuckled darkly, "Oh, Mary. You no longer call the shots. Now, be a good girl and stay out of my way. Unless...You want to be punished." Ib felt herself shiver at those words even though they weren't directed at her. She could feel herself slowly start to panic, but she forced herself to swallow it down. Slowly, her brain began to send her images and messages of expressions her father and mother once told her that she should do when faced with a situation akin to this one. However, screaming was not really Ib's thing, so instead she shut her eyes, scrunching them up, and pulled her leg back before swinging it forward and up.

The creature before her hissed and let go in horrendous pain. Ib didn't spare the mystery man a single glance as she turned around and ran with Mary through the door, the younger girl locking it behind them. They continued running through the halls, Mary leading the way, but when trying to follow the girl around a turn Ib slammed right into a desk. She flopped over it, plopping onto the floor with no grace in the slightest. When the sound caught up with her she heard something shatter and for some reason water was dripping from her head. Ib sneezed loudly before standing up, wiping imaginary dust off of her. Quietly she turned around to stare at a broken vase that had once been full of water, but that substance was now dripping from her head. She sighed heavily, before remembering her rose. She spotted it on the floor and was about to pick it up when a drop of water hit it. Ib stared in awe as the missing petals grew back. Carefully, she picked up the rose and examined it, but the flower was as good as new. Ib looked back at the now broken vase, making a mental note to keep them in mind. It seemed the water here had some special properties.

Ib turned back into the direction she last saw Mary, but the green-clad girl was no longer in sight. Without another choice, Ib began to walk down the hallway, looking out for the child, but when she reached a fork in the road she knew that she was screwed. While debating on which was to go Ib heard a crash from her right. A part of her was suspicious of this and wanted to go left, but then she began to think that it could be Mary. Skeptically, Ib briskly made her way down the hall, nervously looking behind her when she felt that she was being watched. However, looking backwards while walking was never a very smart idea.

Ib tripped and was not able to regain her balance as she landed on something, which turned out to be a familiar  _someone._  Ib lifted herself up in shock, staring down at the lavender haired man. Strangely, he hadn't even groaned when she fell on him. She shook his shoulder and then harder when he still didn't respond. Now afraid, Ib decided that drastic means were necessary. She shut her eyes and had lifted up her hand, sending it on a clear path to the boy's fair face when her hand was grabbed.

"W-Woah! I-Ib, is that really you!?" The boy lurched forwards and dragged the girl down, hugging her in both relief and enthusiasm. "Oh my God, I'm so happy that you're okay! We somehow got separated and I ended up with this weird blue rose before I ended up here! Then these things kept attacking me!" Garry sputtered out before pausing and taking a lustrous blue rose from his breast pocket. "That's weird. All the petals were gone a second ago, so how did..." At that exact moment, as if it knew that proof was needed, a small water droplet dripped off of the tip of Ib's bangs, landing directly on the blue flower.

"The water here restores them." Ib stated, catching a droplet in one hand. She looked at the drop before returning her gaze to Garry who, for some reason, had gotten extremely red in the face. Ib peered at him closer, leaning in, remembering that redness in the face could mean fever. "Uh...Um...I-I..er...Ib, c-could you umm..." Ib stared at him, not at all able to understand what he was trying to get at. Garry then began to gesture so Ib looked down, taking notice of her position on his chest, legs on either side. Perhaps he wanted her to get up? The floor really didn't look all that comfortable...

Ib got to her feet and offered a hand to Garry who willingly took it. Once on their feet Ib began to backtrack to the fork in the road, deciding to take the other passage in an attempt to re-encounter Mary. While on the way Garry asked to be informed of all that she had experienced so far, and so she did, but only because she felt that he deserved to know.

Once she was finished Garry remained silent, processing it all. "Well, it sounds like we entered this place from two different locations, but that might be because of these," He held up his own rose, "But your experience sounds different from mine. I didn't fall or anything. I just kept walking and walking in the dark until I found it, but there were these thorns covering the glass cage it was in. I managed to get it out, but it didn't grow any bigger. I heard something behind me and just ran until I reached this door, and when I opened it I was in this place." He summed up, shivering at the memory of it all. Ib just nodded, only faltering in her step when she spotted a painting she remembered. The plaque underneath read:  _The Red Lady_.

The two stared at the painting, remembering that they had seen it by the office on the first day they had arrived. The portrait was remarkable, and the brunette woman was indeed very pretty, her eyes mysterious and yet were spotted with other emotions that Ib did not know how to describe, but some of them were perhaps lust, softness, and a temptation. "Wow, this is amazin-Ahhhh!" Garry screamed when the woman's hands reached through the painting.

The two jumped back, watching as the woman  _growled_  at them, like some feral beat! After her arms came her head and then torso. The painting began to teeter in place before falling to the floor, and then once she snapped out of the small shock the woman stared up at them and smiled like she were hungry, and then raced towards them. Garry, screaming like a trooper the whole entire time, grabbed Ib's hand and so the two of them raced away from the feral, possibly hungry painting of a woman who could be nothing but mad in the head! However, the painting was singing for her dinner and was hot on their trail.

Ib, seeing as how Garry was screaming away yet still somehow running, felt unexpectedly calm. Perhaps it was due to Garry. Perhaps she was just tired of things trying to attack her. Whatever it was Ib didn't care. When she saw the opportunity she took it. Ib changed directions and dragged Garry down another hallway, grasping at door knobs until one opened, before shoving them both inside and closing the door. They leaned against said door, breathing heavily. Garry sunk to the floor, his arms limply hanging onto his legs with his head in the middle. Ib leaned against the door next to him, her mind wrapped up in what happened before she heard something like a clicking. Her eyes snapped to Garry who was holding a lighter in his hands, his eyes glassily reflecting the warm light of the small fire. Ib stared at it too, silence engulfing them.

The longer Ib stared at the lighter the greater her headache became. It was as if a woodpecker were drilling a hole into her brain, so she turned away from the fire and surveyed the room instead, noting that there was only a door on the other side of the room. Ib walked over to it and found a small key in the keyhole. She unlocked the door, but was disappointed when she found that the door had many locks on it and the key, unfortunately, did not open all of them. Sighing, Ib put the key in her pocket with the rose and walked back to Garry, bending down in front of him. They stared at the other for at least thirty short seconds before Garry flipped his lighter closed.

"Sorry about freaking out. I just-this place is so strange. It's almost like its familiar, but I don't know how that could be possible." Garry pocketed his lighter, "I don't know why but there are only two things that really calm me down, and one of those things is my lighter." He got to his feet when Ib did, giving her a reassuring smile, "Sorry for worrying you." Ib only nodded, more surprised than anything that he knew she was upset, but this wasn't the first time he had noticed, "After All, we're partners so I shouldn't be the one screaming every time."

Garry began to mutter something under his breath about how he needed to get a grip, not realizing that Ib was now blushing. Garry had stated that they were  _partners_ , and that was something that she wouldn't mind being repeated. Ib had never had a partner before, or at least a willing one. When she was partnered up in school most kids were reluctant to have her in their group, but here this boy was, a guy she had somehow  _befriended_ , who was partnering with her on his own free will. If it wasn't for the situation Ib would have cried in joy.

"Thank you." Ib quietly said, prompting Garry to shut up and stare at her in puzzlement. "For what?"

Ib only turned back towards the door and opened it, smiling, leaving Garry somewhat confused, but the boy just shrugged it off as a  _girl thing_ , but in all honestly he had a good idea of what Ib had meant.

The two walked through the halls quietly, keeping an eye out for  _The Red Lady_ incase she was still hunting them. They had just come to a strange spiral staircase when Ib noticed that on the base of the steps was a key much like the one she had seen Mary with earlier. Picking up the key the two made their way to the top of the staircase where there was a door, Ib placed the key into the lock, unsure if it would work. However, it did unlock and they were about to walk through when Ib heard her name being called. The two turned to see Mary at the base of the steps, looking up at them. "Ib! Please, don't leave me here!"

Ib felt herself falter, remembering that the girl was stuck here, but her and Garry needed to leave. They had to go back to the school so that they could rest and come up with a new plan of action. Garry, realizing Ib's predicament, looked her in the eye seriously, "We'll come back for her. We need to find Kate still and we can figure out a way to rescue Mary also." Ib nodded sadly, looking down at Mary. "We'll come back!" Garry yelled to the blonde just as the staircase began to creak and wobble. The whole building seemed to be quaking beneath their feet, "Come on!" Garry yelled, pulling Ib through the door.

The blinked as darkness enveloped them, but they were still aware of themselves. The two were a bit squished together, and Garry's hand moved across the wall trying to find some form of a light fixture or switch, or even a door knob! He finally grasped something that felt like a knob and turned it, allowing blinding light to enter the room. The two collapsed, falling out of the small closet that smelled of cleaner, and onto the cold hard floor. They scrambled to their feet and looked around; they were back at the school!

Garry looked at his watch, collapsing back on the floor when he read that it was 8:10 PM. Ib too was relieved, but could hardly believe that they had only been gone for ten minutes! However, they faintly heard shoes clicking in the distance, coming closer to them rapidly. They scrambled up, shutting the closet door quietly, before taking off down the hall. They ran into the cafeteria and raced through the exit, not stopping until they were at the crossway between the dorms. The two were hunched over, hands on their knees, as they tried to catch their breath.

Garry began to chuckle, plopping himself on the ground in relief. Ib smiled down at him, feeling utterly exhausted. They both decided that they could wait to talk about anything until tomorrow, but they promised each other that they wouldn't go back to  _that_ place without informing the other first, just to be on the safe side.

"Goodnight, Ib." Garry stated, waving as he began to walk towards the men's dorm. Ib waved also, "Goodnight."

Ib arrived back at the dorm extremely exhausted in both mind and body. All she wanted to do was to get some sleep and think about all that just happened later, but as she was heading towards her room she paused, her eyes catching movement on the stairs. "Ib?" A loud voice that could only belong to one girl called out, "What'cha doin' up? Can you not sleep? Why is your shirt ripped in the back?" Amelia was upon Ib in mere seconds, scanning her over. Suddenly, a smirk began to spread over her face. Ib was sure that whatever the girl was thinking was very wrong.

"Ib~ Tell mama Amelia the truth now, were you just out with some boy?" She waggled her eyebrows suggestively and Ib sighed, but didn't deny it...She had been out with Garry, but probably not in the sense Amelia was thinking of.

"Yes." She admitted, causing Amelia to sputter and let out an unladylike "HUH?! What, seriously?"

"I was with Garry and-" Ib was going to tell her that they had just happened to meet up, but Ib didn't want to lie to the girl and Amelia interrupted her anyway by hugging her to her breasts. "My poor baby! Those horrible men are trying to ravage my lil' Ib! I'll have to sick Gilly on him later...Tell me, did he do anything weird or touch you?"

Amelia was only being melodramatic and was kidding around. She didn't expect for Ib to admit anything! The worst part was that Ib was asking why Garry looked so red when she fell on him! Amelia only laughed and hugged Ib, leading the girl to her room. "Ib, let me start you off on a brand new course. It's called  _Boys 101: The Do's and Don'ts_. Mama Amelia will explain all."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updated and fixed.


	9. Chapter 9

Painting is just another way of keeping a diary.

-Pablo Picasso

 

Small dark spots loitered sluggishly. All the dots giving the impression of rapid, blinking motions. They formed all kinds of odds and ends, not leaving any room before blurring into something new. Sometimes they formed numbers, other times what looked like moving strands of DNA. They only came in two colours: black and white. Sometimes, when one closes their eyes, they can change colours.

Ib blinked, taking in all the dots that were merely particles, and turned onto her side before sitting up. She tiredly glanced down at Amelia, who was half sprawled out on the floor. Sleeping. Slowly, her mind began to process the reason behind Amelia's sleeping presence in her room. This sluggishness wasn't something Ib was used to, but the memory eventually did come to mind.

Ib had gotten back to the dorm and Amelia had intercepted her. The girl had followed her back to her room and they spent most of the night talking and eating chips... wherever Amelia had gotten those from. That's right, the wheat-haired girl had given Ib a small crash course on boys. Ib still wasn't too sure as to what she should make about it, but it was very... interesting. To say the least.

With a yawn, Ib stood up only to squat down and shake Amelia's shoulder. The other girl groaned, starting to awaken. She rolled onto her side only for her legs to slide off the bed. They landed on the floor with a thud and Amelia groaned at the minimal pain.

"Amelia, it is time to wake up. We're going to be late." Ib glanced at the clock as she said this, assuring herself that she wouldn't be late. However, Amelia didn't need to know that. Besides, the desired effect hadn't even been achieved. The girl had sat up far enough to look at the clock, then plopped back down with her arm over her eyes.

"Five more minutes," she mumbled in reply.

Ib sighed to herself, deciding to dress herself for the day. She would deal with Amelia afterwards. However, just as she finished dressing there was a knock at her door. She headed over, stepping over Amelia's crumpled spare uniform that she brought over, and opened the door.

"Good morning, Ib. Is Amelia still asleep in there?" Lumi asked, waiting for Ib to let her in. She took one look at the prone girl and sighed. "Oh, Amelia, it's a war-zone no matter where you fall asleep. Sorry, Ib. I'll have her up in no time... you might want to take a step back."

Once Ib took the precautionary step back, Lumi bent down close to the sleeping girl's ear and exclaimed, "Free ice-cream! Limited time offer!"

Amelia bolted up and ripped off her nightgown as she struggled to put her uniform on at the same time, screaming about getting in line and flavors. Lumi only backed up to where Ib was and gestured for them to leave, and quickly. Which had been a great idea, for as soon as Amelia became aware of herself she started yelling through the door at Lumi.

Ib watched the fair blonde chuckle. "Well, that's one of the safer ways to wake Amelia up."

"Safer?"

"Yes, if you try to drag her out of bed or shake her there's a high possibility of being kicked, punched, or even both." Lumi smiled and gestured for them to continue walking. Ib followed her out of the dorms and towards the academy, chatting about this and that as they went.

Even though the conversation was on happier topics, Ib felt weighted. Every time she closed her eyes she could see Mary, the small blonde crying for Ib not to leave her behind. Strangely, she felt like she had heard Mary tell her that before. However, Ib hadn't ever encountered the girl until last night. There was also the fact that Ib hadn't grown any closer to finding Kate last night. Instead she had gotten lost, met Mary and a strange figure, had encountered Garry, again, and then they left. However, Ib had acquired a rose. Oddly, it wasn't with her when she crossed back over. Ib decided to ask Garry if he still had his, if not then perhaps the roses only existed in  _that_ place.

They got in line for food, sliding their trays across the metal bars. It was an early morning process: choose a line and give a few replies to the lunch ladies/men and then proceed to a table after taking food.

Ib and Lumi sat at the normal table where Garry and Soaru were already sitting. They exchanged greetings and moved on to small talk, however Ib and Garry shared a look. "I think I forgot a spoon," Garry interjected, standing up to go get one. Ib also stood up, quietly following to fetch a few more napkins that she didn't need.

Garry slowed for her to catch up and they conversed quietly. "I don't know what to say. I-I... Whatever  _that_ place is can't be normal. Last night feels like a big illusion and, even though I know it wasn't, I don't even have that rose anymore to assure myself."

Ib nodded, telling him that she no longer had her's either.

"We're no closer to finding Kate and then there's that Mary girl you told me about... We said we'd go back for her."

"We will. Kate might still be there; there's nowhere else she can be." Ib stated, taking a few napkins from the dispenser.

Garry nodded, "Alright, but we should be better prepared this time. I'll meet you before lunch so that we can plan."

Ib nodded again as they turned to walk back. She glanced over at Garry and was pleasantly happy that he was going to go through with this. A part of her had been worried that he would have cut off all ties and claimed that she was crazy. Anyone else probably would have.

They had just arrived back at the table when Amelia suddenly pounced upon poor Garry, wrapping him in a choke-hold, "I know what you did, you vile fiend! How could you? She was so pure and defenseless!"

"Amelia, what the hell?" Dmitri shouted, raising a brow at the scene.

"You can't touch my poor baby anymore!" Amelia yelled at Garry, who was trying to get her off of him without harming the strong girl.

"What is going on?" Soaru, ever the voice of reason, asked calmly as he laid a hand on Amelia's shoulder. It seemed to work. Amelia released Garry, allowing him to start breathing, in favor of grabbing Soaru dramatically by the shirt.

"Oh, it was terrible! Dastardly! My poor baby has been tainted!" Amelia let go off his shirt and pounced upon Ib, hugging the girl as she cooed, "It's alright, he won't bother you anymore."

Dmitri rolled his eyes as Gillian joined in, "What did he do, bump into her?"

Amelia "hmphed" and looked over at Soaru instead, "Things I cannot say! He's confusing my poor baby and it must be stopped!"

At this point Ib and Garry had given up and decided to just eat. Garry a bit more bitter about the chokehold, but wasn't one to hold a grudge. Amelia was just being dramatic, again. The conversation eventually was redirected to Lumi, who the two had just realized was missing.

"She left with Neah." Soaru stated, ignoring Luno's frown.

"Woah! I thought Neah was already in class!" Amelia said in relative surprise. Soaru nodded at her, "He was excused due to the concert coming up."

"Concert?" Garry inquired. He had heard about showcases but not concerts.

"Oh, you guys don't know?" Amelia didn't wait for a reply as she launched into the answer, "Yeah, well, the school holds concerts just for the students. It's usually really cool and it's really beneficial to newbies!"

"Basically, it's the calm before the storm," Soaru simplified as he retook his own seat. "Showcases are prepared for months in advance, so the school usually holds a concert right before the truly crazy season starts. As of right now, the deadline is far enough away that many are still calm but, as the deadlines grow closer, both the faculty and students become chaotic."

"No need to scare them," Dmitri stated before turning to Ib and Garry, "You guys transferred here at an ideal time. People will probably help you with anything you need so you shouldn't let this 'deadline' freak you out, yes?"

Garry nodded, still a bit worried about what was to come during this crazy period as the showcase neared. "When's the concert?"

"In four days!" Amelia beamed, her leg bouncing against her chair happily. "I can't wait! I don't think I've told you guys, but Lumi and Neah are going to be the ending act!"

"Really? We'll have to get some really good seats." Gillian gushed, "Do you know what she'll be wearing? I want to photo-"

"We're eating, Gilly!" Dmitri interjected. Gillian pouted but didn't continue.

Dmitri turned back to Ib and Garry, "Seeing as no one is saying anything, I'll tell you, yes? Neah is this academy's most recognized musician. He was known for playing solos, but during his first year here he was paired up with Lumi for a showcase. I'll let you be the judges of if you like it or not, but apparently the performance raked in millions from sponsors."

"Yeah, only Luno and Kate were here at the time! I arrived a few months after the showcase." Amelia said, not noticing as Garry choked on his drink or how Ib stiffened.

The two shared a look, trying to recall if they had ever asked the girl as to whether she remembered Kate or not. Taking a small step of faith, Garry interjected into the conversation, "Who's Kate?"

"Well, which one? Cute Kate, adorable Kate, or tiny Kate?" Gillian asked, gushing about something else again.

Garry quickly listed some characteristics that Ib had told him that Kate Gridlings had.

"No, I don't think so. However, I don't really know most of the fashion students." Dmitri stated with a shrug.

"Guys! Really, Kate! That one girl who hung out with Lumi for a while!" Amelia stated incredulously. "I think something happened to her yesterday."

"I don't remember anything." Gillian stated with a shrug.

The conversation quickly ended as it was time to get to class. They all stood up and departed, some going off in groups to their classes. As Ib and Garry walked they quietly conversed about Amelia.

"She remembers Kate, but why don't the others?" Garry ran his hand through his hair once before looking down at Ib, "Do you think we should tell her?"

Ib wasn't too sure. It could just be by chance that Amelia remembered Kate, a simple lapse in memory. However,  _that_ place was dangerous and Ib didn't want to involve an innocent bystander. Amelia wasn't sucked into it, she didn't know about anything. It should stay that way.

"No."

Garry nodded. He had already known that her answer would be the same as his, "So, what was Amelia yelling about this morning anyway?"

Ib pointedly did not say anything, too embarrassed. Amelia's little crash course had popped back into her mind and she wasn't too sure about most of them but, apparently, falling on boys may give them-as Amelia put it-"raunchy ideas of impurity."

Garry called after her, hurrying to catch up when she began to walk faster. "Ib, what's wrong?"

* * *

Ib arrived at her third class, which was painting, feeling nervous for reasons she didn't know. It had all started that morning when she had entered her first period class. The teacher had instructed them to construct-through any art medium-something surreal. It could be something like angels, scenery, or wishes. Ib hadn't really been meaning to, but she ended up drawing the cloaked figure. The simple sketch gave her chills just remembering the events that transpired.

During her second period she had drawn one of the vases, feeling immediately better and well collected. However, she had left the two sketches by themselves for just a moment to fetch a pencil sharpener as Ib had left her bag in her room that morning by mistake. When she had come back, sharp point in hand, the drawings had... changed.

The vase had a crack in it that hadn't been there before. The water had diminished almost entirely and it was now on a table that highly resembled the one she had tripped over just last night. The other sketch was somehow lighter than it should have been, the cloaked figure now closer than Ib remembered having drawn.

It had been unnerving and she could feel her panic rising. No matter how many times she blinked or flipped the pictures over the images stayed the same. Her originals were gone, these warped ones left in its wake. Oddly, Ib had been thinking about running away from the cloaked figure and about how the water in the vase had revitalized her rose.

Inwardly shaking her head, Ib went to fetch some art supplies. In this class she wouldn't draw anything from  _that_ place. Instead, she already had an idea as to what to draw. The prompt had to with painting indoor landscapes, such as rooms, so she was going to paint her living room back at home.

Halfway through, Ib had gotten up to let the first layer dry. It had been an opportune time to fetch a refill on paint for her pallette. However, upon returning her painting had changed somehow. Everything looked nearly the same, but Ib caught that a strange painting was hanging on one of the walls. She peered closer, her nose hovering just a fraction away from the canvas. Inside that tiny painting frame was something gray. Hesitantly, she reached her smallest finger out, which was her pinky, and lightly touched it.

Jolts of electricity raced up her body as the crumbling hallway Garry and her had gotten separated in rapidly flashed into her mind. Next came the canvas she had found on the ground, the empty one. Only that blank space now was dripping vermillion and a hand was in it, reaching out in a gesture for help, a familiar ring on that lone hand. As quickly as it appeared the images were gone, leaving Ib with her original painting, the small outlier no longer present.

The brunette shook, her palette wobbling unsteadily in her hands. This had never happened before, but she had this dreaded feeling that this wouldn't be the last time something like this happened. She should probably tell Garry about this, lunch was right after this class was over anyway. Maybe she wasn't the only one.

"Hey, are you alright there?" Ib turned to the other girl who's name she couldn't remember. She nodded at the blonde girl, trying not to look into her brown eyes to avoid any problems. The blonde only stepped closer, "Are you sure? Ya look a little spooked, like you saw a ghost or something."

"Yes, I'm fine now, thank you." The girl flashed her a large smile before she looked over at Ib's painting. "Is that based on your own house?"

Ib nodded, "My living room."

Ib watched Lucy's awed face, feeling happy at her awed face. "Wow! It's really pretty and the walls are such a nice colour!"

"Thank you." Ib mumbled, shuffling her feet in embarrassment at the compliment. The girl smiled over at her, "My names Lucy."

"Ib."

"Huh, what a strange name, but oddly cute." Lucy stated with her index finger on her chin in a thoughtful pose. "Do you like books?"

Ib paused before nodding, which prompted Lucy to ask her if she knew so-and-so series. The two discussed book series for another few minutes before another girl joined in. This girl had strawberry blonde hair and brown eyes. She was shorter than Lucy, but four inches taller than Ib was. Ib found herself softly smiling at the two's antics, having a feeling that they were rather close to one another.

"Well, his last book is coming out this year, right before Christmas." Rose explained enthusiastically to the two, using her hands to communicate, "Oh, I can't wait! They're also making the series into a TV show!"

"Really? Do you know who's going to play Blake or Sergio yet?" Lucy asked, moving from foot to foot in excitement. The other girl shook her head, "No, but there are rumors that it might be some unknown actors."

Ib paid attention to the conversation, but was unable to add much. She hadn't any idea about the last book or the series becoming a TV show. She had never payed much attention to those type of things. However, she could speculate on certain characteristics the actors would have to have to make it believable. After all, imagining had nearly nothing to do with reality.

"Neh, neh, Ib," Lucy started as she returned to her canvas, which was right next to Ib, "Maybe us three could watch his other series later on, like this weekend?"

Ib nodded in agreement hesitantly, but it brought a smile to Lucy's face all the same. "Great! I'll talk more about details with you later."

After another coat of paint class ended. Ib began to take down her painting to carefully store away when someone roughly bumped into her. The painting fell to the ground as the girl told her to "watch it" before sauntering out the door. Ib bent down to pick it up, frowning at the picture; there was a speck of dirt in the center. Carefully, she tried to lightly scratch it off, but it was no use. She would have to repaint over it and hope for the best.

After placing the painting in her assigned cubby, Ib left the room. Once in the hallway she spotted Garry leaning against the wall. Once he spotted her, he walked over with a smile, "Hey, Ib."

"Hello," she replied back softly. The two fell into step with one another and started to walk, both unsure of how to start off the conversation. "So-" they both started before pausing, "What were you-" the two paused and Ib felt herself let out a small laugh at the same time Garry did.

"I think we both know what we need to talk about," Garry said as they continued walking. Ib nodded, "We're going back tonight then?"

"Yeah, we promised Mary. We also need to find out about Kate." Ib paused in her steps.

"Garry, I want you to look at something." The lavenderette paused and watched as Ib pulled out two drawings from her bag. She showed up of them to him, "I didn't draw them like this."

Garry looked confused by this, "Why do you mean? How could you not have drawn them like this?"

"I.. don't know. They changed. This cloaked figure was further away and the vase was full and not cracked." Ib slowly looked around the wall before taking a different route towards the cafeteria.

"Wait, Ib, where are we going?"

"To check that one canvas."

"You mean the one that was blank?" Ib merely nodded. She had a bad feeling about it, about the whole situation in general.

The two carefully looked to make sure the coast was clear before crossing under the tape, not wanting to be caught. They descended down the hall before Ib paused. The two stared at the prone canvas, a feeling of trepidation coursing through them. Ib gingerly turned the canvas over, her eyes widening to see that the once blank canvas now had some colour. It was still mostly blank, but the corners were now bleeding pink and in the center was the start of what appeared to be the outline of a figure.

"What.. but it was blank just yesterday!" Garry exclaimed, thoroughly taken aback by this sudden change. Ib remained quiet as she looked over at the wall where a small nail was hammered in. Standing on the tips of her toes she placed the canvas on the wall. The two stared at it just before Ib began to walk further down.

Garry hurried to follow after her, wanting to ask her where she was headed to, but he already knew the answer for himself. So, against his better judgement, he allowed her to reach the door at the end of the hall and step through, following after her. He had not the faintest idea as to why, but there was just this feeling within him that he would, more than likely, follow her no matter how many more times they had to step through this door or go to that world.

He gulped, nearly afraid of his own strong feelings. He had only known Ib for a couple days, but it felt like he'd known her for so much longer. He shrugged the strange nostalgic feeling off and followed her over to another door.

She carefully turned the knob and the next thing he knew, Garry was submerged in deep blue.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING(s): There is some explicit content (Gore) that may make readers feel uncomfortable . Please read carefully. There is also, surprisingly, some small fluff...Well, my attempt at it.

Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.

-Cesar Cruz

 Tiny rays of white and clear blue light swayed as if they were simply indecisive choices. Bubbles rapidly lingered, ascending. Few straggled behind, trapped within the enclosure. Large gasps went unheard as water poured in with no signs of coming out. The air created by these gasps created more foam that would ascend towards their new existence. One day, they that lived upon the upper surface would also break away from their aquarius ties, but only for a time.

Garry could feel the lack of air start to enclose him. He struggled, pumping his arms and legs to swim towards the surface. Yet, the more he swam the farther away it grew. Arms wrapped around his waist and his panic driven mind didn't comprehend that they were trying to help him. Instead, it told him to clutch to them for dear life and continue squirming if that didn't work out.

A large, unidentified, fish passed right besides him, eyeing him with no emotion. Garry could feel his anxiety heighten further and it didn't diminish, not even when the fish swam away without incident. He looked over and saw another fish with a lure, but what drew him in the most was the large, pin-sharp teeth it had. If possible, Garry would have gulped and screamed, but instead opted to just stare in frozen fear.

Ib pulled Garry out of the water, suppressing a wince when they landed on a flight of stairs. The lavenderette started to hack up water and breathe at the same time. Currently, he was laying with his back on top of her, making it hard for Ib to get up. She patted his back, trying to help him spit up the water clogging his lungs. After several more coughing induced moments, only a burning in his throat was left.

He continued to wheeze and gulp down air while holding his chest for a few more moments before realizing that he was probably crushing his friend. He got to his feet shakily, feeling that his balance was off as he teetered slightly. He tried to steady himself, but there wasn't a railing to hold onto. Instead, the walls were entirely made of water, the very thing that had nearly killed him.

Ib got to her feet and calmly steadied him by grabbing hold of his hand and shoulder. He whipped his head to look over at her, his anxiety starting to cool off. However, he was still pretty upset and confused.

"How in the world are we here?" He nearly yelled, glaring briefly at a strange fish that passed by.

Ib was also trying to figure that out, but then she spotted what may have been the answer, "The rose, it's in your breast pocket." Garry following her motion. He stared down, shocked to see his own blue rose that hadn't been there before. He sputtered for words before closing his mouth as he tried to organize his thoughts.

As he did that, Ib noticed that quite a few petals had already fallen from his rose. Realization hit her and she looked down at herself to find her own. She quickly located the lustrous red rose on her hip, the stem tucked into her skirt. She quickly slid it out, her gaze lingering on the floor to check for stray petals. There were none.

When she had opened the door, she had taken a breath and held it right as the water surged at them. Garry had probably been taken by surprise and was too shocked, meaning that he ended up swallowing the water. Staring at the fallen withering petals, Ib felt guilty. Each and every petal that had fallen was entirely her fault. Garry had used a different route the last time, maybe she should have discussed ways to get in first before just blindly charging ahead. Given, she didn't really think it would work.

"Ib, do you think that because we have these we no longer have to wait until eight?" Garry asked as he indicated towards her rose.

Ib nodded but paused as she felt a strange weight in her pocket. She hesitantly reached inside and drew out the keys that she had collected the day before. 'Convenient' she thought to herself as Garry smiled a little, "Well, at least we don't have to worry about unlocking doors that we already went through."

The two began to descend the steps in relative silence. The mysterious fish could be seen through the clear water, sometimes even swimming towards the border that separated them but were unable to cross into the stairway. Throughout the silence, the two didn't realize that they were still holding the other's hand.

They reached the end of the stairs and Ib was surprised to see that they had exited somewhere completely unfamiliar. She paused to look around, taking in the room that was much like the one she had come out of the previous day. However, the water casted a lighter shade of blue across the room and the ceiling was higher.

They went out the only door, almost relieved that the interior was still the same. They began to walk down the hallway, keeping an eye out for vases and doors. Just up ahead Ib could make out a lone door at the end of the hallway. They picked up the pace and eagerly checked to see if it was unlocked. It wasn't.

Garry sighed, "Seems like we'll have to look for the key."

Ib nodded, already feeling tired from previous experience.

The two searched down another hallway until coming across a door, this one unlocked. They cautiously walked inside, weary for anything that could jump out and attack them. However, all they found were a few rows of musty tomes. Garry began to browse through some of the pages as Ib glanced at some a few shelves over. The room was silent as they perused for a while.

"Most of these are just about his paintings." Garry said out loud as he closed another book with one hand. He neatly placed it back on the shelf, his nose scrunching up from the layers of dust. Ib only coughed as a large glob of dust rose into the air upon pulling out another smaller book. She stared at it curiously. The cover was taller than it was wide and seemed to have a child's semblance.

Garry nearly jumped two feet in the air when he heard something clatter to the floor behind him. He swiveled around, "Ib!" When there was no response he hurried over to the isle she was last in, but there was only a book on the floor. Cautiously, Garry picked it up. The cover read  _Careless Carrie_  in childlike letters. He opened to the first page and blinked just before he was pulled in.

Raucous laughter soon filled the silence as pictures started to explode before him in colourful bursts. The echoes of laughter mixed into a loud piercing scream that nearly made his heart leap into his throat. A long hall now stood before him with no end in sight. The lights started to flicker as the fixtures shook. Something breathed heavily behind him, causing Garry to start running down the never-ending hallway. His steps, though absorbed by the carpet, thundered in his ears like a stampede of animals. His breathing came out harshly, his body not used to all the exercise he'd been doing. Heck, his muscles still ached from the previous days extraneous activities!

The noise behind him drew closer and he began to recognize that whoever it is was laughing. He heard something swipe at the air and he tried to run faster, not wanting to get caught by the weapon wielding psycho. Just as his sides began to hurt Garry reached a ninety-degree angle. He tried to stop so that he wouldn't hit the wall, but came up short. His shoes skidded across the carpet, the traction not keeping him steady, and promptly slammed one half of himself right into the wall. He ended up falling over, a frame tumbling over due to the vibrations and smacking him in the noggin. He winced at the sound of breaking glass and the pain. He tried to catch his breath as his head turned to the side to look out for his pursuer.

There was no one there.

He sighed in relief, thanking any deity. His alleviation, however, was cut short by the resounding of giggles and the red substance that was slowly making its way past him. With a large gulp Garry sat up and stared ahead. The red trail led to a door at the end of the hall. Shakily, he got to his feet and, avoiding the red liquid, made his way to the partly open door. He placed a hand on the childish door, surprised that it felt neither hot nor cold, and pushed it further open so that he could peer inside.

He wished he hadn't.

Garry turned away from the scene to retch. There was a young child on the floor, her eyes wide open and fearful, crusted with tears. She was shallowly breathing, the life dying right out of her. Her dress was ripped right across the stomach, but the incision went further. Blood flowed from her belly and pooled around her, yellow fatty tissue following, and what was probably her intestines were half hanging out, as if they were pulled out in search of something. The room smelled of rot and blood, making Garry throw up once more.

"G-Garry," despite his want to run away, Garry looked back into the room at the familiar voice. He desperately prayed that he had just been hearing things, but his hope died upon looking over at the closet. It was partly open. He made sure not to glance at the body as he stepped around the blood with a grimace etched on his face. Garry slid open the closet far enough that he could squeeze in and quickly bent down to hug the shaking girl.

Garry knew that Ib wasn't easily spooked, that was more of his thing, but he honestly could discern that this was something that no one would be able to handle. They rocked back and forth, Garry trying to refrain from crying. Ib held tightly to him, giving out a few shaky breaths as she tried to calm herself down. The brunette had seen most of what happened to poor Carrie from the closet that Carrie had pushed her in. She had to hear the bluette's fearful cries and the pinkette's wicked laughter. She shivered, knowing that the sight was going to stay with her for a long time.

"I'm okay," she whispered, but felt oddly comfortable in this position. Amelia often hugged Ib and the girl did enjoy them, secretly, but this hug felt different. It was full of consolation and the reminder that things were going to be alright.

Garry looked down at her, pulling away to grasp her shoulders lightly, his eyes filled with worry, "Are you sure?" Ib nodded just before her eyes widened at something behind him.

Garry shivered as a childish laugh resounded through the room just before Ib lunged at him and tackled him to the ground. He heard the swoosh and whipping of air rather than saw the knife that caused it. In fact, he only spotted it when it was coming straight down at them. He quickly grabbed on to Ib and rolled them both off to his left, missing the knife again. The two jumped up as the girl began to follow them, leading to something that oddly reminded Garry and Ib of a predator stalking its prey.

The pinkette smiled at them, the grin making Garry shiver. She looked rather deranged and the blood staining her clothes and the blood soaked knife that was being pointed at them did _not_  help. The girl looked down at the bluette and giggled, "Oops, guess I was as careless as Carrie."

Garry felt his anger bubble and foam over, "Isn't she your friend? Why would you-?"

The girl walked over to Carrie, standing so that they could she what she was about to do, and dug her hand into Carrie's stomach. Garry nearly gagged as Ib tried to look away so she wouldn't end up losing her breakfast anytime soon. She only giggled as she pulled out a golden key that was now painted in bodily fluids. She didn't even bat an eye when she licked it clean, putting the thing into her mouth before taking it out.

"That's disgusting," Garry recoiled, his face screwing into a look of absolute disgust. Carrie only smiled at him, flashing her pearly whites that now had a few specks on blood on them, "I can't give the key back if it's dirty. Mommy would know that it was my fault that it fell in the galette de rois and that Carrie ate the piece that had it."

Garry raised his eyebrows, "You could have told her and then waited for it to come out naturally."

The girl imitated Garry's look of utter disgust, "Ew, who wants to touch the poop in the toilet?"

Garry gave her an incredulous look, "Yeah, because cutting open their  _stomach_ and digging for the darn thing is just  _so_ much cleaner!"

Ib grabbed Garry's arm, giving him a meaningful look. Obviously, this girl was demented and needed some serious help, but they needed to get out of here lest they end up like Carrie. Ib didn't like the situation, especially because Garry was already running low on petals. From the looks of it, he had maybe six or seven left. Given that Ib had only lost three so far, she stepped towards the pinkette, swallowing the building anxiety within her. It was her own fault for opening that childish book that trapped them here. But if there was a way in, then there had to be a way out.

"I should hurry and put this back on the table!" The girl turned on her heel and started out the door with a giggle. As she fled the room started to grow darker. Ib, feeling that something was wrong with the dimming lights, hurried to pull Garry towards the door. A hand lashed out and stopped them, they looked back at Carrie, "Get the key and leave, but _beware of the children_."

Both watched as darkness consumed her. Ib forced herself to turn her attention to the front and drag Garry from the room, "Hurry, we have to get that key."

Garry gave her a guilty nod, troubled that he wasn't able to do anything for poor Carrie. They raced down the hallway, searching for any sign of the pinkette. Garry cried out as something was thrown at his head and it would have hit if he hadn't forced his head down. Childish giggling echoed and vibrated throughout the hall, turning into demented laughter as the two arrived in the crudely drawn den area. There, on the floor, was the pinkette. Surrounding her were two brunettes that were the source of the laughter.

The one with twin tails lifted her foot and laughed as it connected with the pinkette's stomach, making her cry out in pain. The other girl landed a kick on her head, smirking in delight at the torment they were inflicting.

"What the heck are you doing?" Garry's voice echoed throughout the room. He marched over grabbed one of the girls and pulled her away while Ib hurried to the pinkette to make sure she was alright.

The pinkette was crying her matching eyes out, curled into a ball. She continued to mumble unintelligibly for a while as her hysteria rose. Ib wasn't sure about what to do. Comforting people never was something that she was preferably good at, but she decided to give it a shot. The last girl kicked the pinkette in the head, which deepened Ib's frown as she turned to look at her. "Stop that already."

"But she killed Carrie!" The girl accused angrily as she pouted.

"Yeah, she harmed Carrie without us! We're supposed to be friends!"

Ib's and Garry's eyes widened at the statements, feeling dread creep in. The pinkette on the floor suddenly stopped crying and a maniacal smile painted itself upon her face, "Then we can play with these guys together."

The two brunettes paused, as if they were weighing their options, before grinning. Ib swallowed loudly as she stood up and started to back away. The pinkette and brunette number one started to come towards her threateningly. Garry pushed brunette number two away from him, knocking her to the floor, but she stood back up. The lavenderette took a step back, his foot coming into contact with the golden key. He quickly picked it up, remembering that this was their way out of this insane place.

Ib walked backwards so that she now stood next to Garry. The pinkette picked up her knife from where she dropped it and started to stab the air around her as the brunettes stood on either side of her, "Give me back the study key."

Garry and Ib shared a look. Really, who in their right mind would give back their only chance at escaping? The two silently decided to split up and regroup at the door on the other end of the room. Giving one last look at the other the two bolted around the threesome and raced towards the door, the group hurrying after them.

Garry shakily tried three doors that they came across, but none where the study. He ducked, pushing Ib's head down also as a knife soared where they were once at, implanting itself in the wall behind them. The two pivoted on their heels and ran away, Ib ripping the knife from the wall and taking it with her.

They fled down a small hallway, hurrying to try the three doors. At around the second the three girls finally caught up and tackled Garry to the floor, sending the key flying. It landed with a small thud at Ib's feet. She quickly picked it up and placed it in the second door, but the door gave way having already been unlocked. She grabbed the key from the hole and brandished the knife, holding it out to one of the brunettes' necks, "Let him go."

The girls froze as the twin tailed girl started to cry. Garry hurried to his feet and pulled Ib into the room, closing the door behind him. Ib firmly held the door closed while Garry started to move furniture in front of it to buy some time. He grunted from the effort of having to move the large dresser and desk before sinking to the floor. He turned to Ib and took the knife out of her unsteady hands. "Thank you, Ib." He said, but his voice was worn. Ib nodded numbly, the adrenaline slowly leaving her.

Once she started to think rationally again, she noticed that there was another door on the left. She pointed towards it and Garry let out a breath of air, "It's probably a bathroom."

Banging came from the door behind them, the force starting to move the furniture forwards. The two got to their feet, something that was becoming quite common for them, and hurried over towards the unknown door. Garry checked see if it was locked or not, and nodded towards Ib when it was. The girl slide the key into the lock and twisted, nearly sighing in relief when she heard the satisfying  _click_.

She pulled open the door just as the pinkette squeezed her way through the door. Garry picked her up and jumped through, slamming the door shut without a glance back. He had had _enough_ of this story to last a lifetime.

Ib blearily opened her eyes, blinking owlishly in the dim lighting. She felt comfortable and warm. She snuggled up against the warmth, wanting nothing more than to fall back asleep. However, she scrunched up her face slightly when her pillow started moving, deep grunts resounding from within it. It was then Ib realized that this was, in fact, not her pillow, but her groggy mind couldn't bring her to care at the moment. Her whole body was heavy and tired and her makeshift pillow was warm and comfy.

Garry grunted as he slowly became aware of his surroundings, feeling dazed. He slowly peeled open his eyes, thankful that the lighting didn't blind him. He had to do a double take at the shelves that towered over him, his brain not processing the images the first time around. He groaned, moving a hand to lazily rub his eyes. He sighed once his eyes were cleared, feeling better that the crust was gone. However, he still felt drained, like he could barely move. His muscles ached, especially his legs from all the running he's been doing. Never before in his life could he recall running so much, well from what he  _could_ remember.

The boy sighed, not wanting to dwell on it. At that very moment he noticed weight on him. He looked down at the source and nearly put a tomato to shame. Ib was curled against his chest, her legs half drawn up towards her. When he shifted her eyebrows furrowed and her mouth twitched into a small pout as she moved just a bit to find a comfortable spot. Her head brushed against his chest, only serving to make Garry's face nearly pop a blood vessel. Gosh, she looked so... he paused to find a better word than cute,  _adorable and fragile_.

He inwardly nodded to himself, feeling proud that he could put words accurately to the picture. He smiled both in embarrassment and relief down at Ib. He was rather comforted by the fact that she could still look so peaceful after the whole Carrie fiasco, but, then again, she probably hadn't woken long enough to remember the whole thing if at all. Heck, he could hardly believe it at all! Running from paintings was one thing, but being sucked into demented  _storybooks_? That was something he would  _never_ be okay with,  _ever_. Well, maybe if the story had been peaceful, but whoever wrote that book wasn't right in the head for several reasons! First of all, the book hardly made sense since the key would eventually come out naturally, but killing Carrie probably took less time.

Garry shook his head, not even wanting to think about it anymore. He closed his eyes, his own haggard body trying to force him to go back to sleep. What was the harm in just closing his eyes for a little? The room was relatively safe and nothing had seen them come in, besides it would only be more a few moments, fifteen tops. A smaller part of him tried to protest, reminding him that he had nearly been killed by three psycho characters from a  _book_ and that they could be attacked. The door is unlocked! Anything could waltz on in if it wanted to! Garry told that part of him to go away, he was far too tired to deal with worrying at the moment.

* * *

Garry awoke to a loud crash at some point. He jumped a good two to three inches before waking Ib up. He blushed again when she slowly blinked, her mind groggy, and then looked up at him. Her red eyes met his own grey-ish ones in confusion before the sound of books hitting the floor caused her attention to be claimed. The two glanced over at the cause, their eyes widening when they beheld a few small stick figures running around the room and drawing scribbles all over the place.

They stayed perfectly still as one came closer to them and climbed up on Garry's leg. It walked across his pants and at about his thigh jumped onto Ib's bare leg. The girl stared at it curiously, unsure of what to do. The thing seemed pretty harmless as it hadn't attacked her, yet. Garry kept a wary eye on it, not liking the animated doodle one bit.

The black stick figure walked up Ib's leg, stepping onto her skirt before mounting her shirt. A few more started to appear around them, each jumping onto Garry and Ib. Garry winced as his hair was pulled painfully and had to swat another from poking him in the eye. A few were climbing up his shirt, getting to his shoulders before jumping onto either his head or Ib. After flinging another away from him, Garry looked to see how Ib was fairing.

They were still in their original positions, only Ib was slightly facing front more. The stick people swarmed over her, a few pulling at her hair and dangling from the long locks. Another few were attempting to crawl up her skirt, something that Ib was busy trying to prevent. The last remaining few, now were climbing on her shirt, one successfully undoing the first two buttons. The others swarmed to the newly exposed skin, looking for a new place to adventure through. Two readily jumped into her shirt, causing Ib to squeak. Garry, not thinking as he was more focused on getting the stick figures out, slapped at her chest, trying to grab the stick people.

Ib felt herself blush faintly as Garry grabbed the two things in her shirt. However, there was a loud scream from above them. She didn't have time to look up as Garry was smacked with a large tome a few times while being screamed at. Ib was then subjected to the tome hitting her as well, only lightly. All the stick figures that were also hit suddenly disappeared and the few remaining ran away.

Ib looked up and blinked in surprise at Amelia. The girl appeared to be seething as she brandished the thick book like a weapon. She drew back and lunged forward, hitting Garry several times in the head while yelling, "Get your perverse hands outta my baby's shirt! Hentai! Rapist!"

"Ow! Amelia, stop!" Garry yelled, raising an arm to block the onslaught of book. Amelia hit him once more, "I knew it! You guys were acting seriously strange and now I totally know why! You vile beast, how dare you put the moves on my baby!"

She viciously smacked at the hand still in Ib's shirt until he withdrew, his whole face going red once again. Amelia pulled Ib to her feet and ensnared her in a large hug, blubbering over something or another. However, Ib was still trying to wrap her mind around the fact that  _Amelia_ is  _here_.

Ib pushed Amelia to arms length, "How did you get here?"

The girl blinked at them before grinning sheepishly, "I sorta followed you guys down that hallway and through that door. Dudes, you'll never believe this but when I walked in there was this HUGE wave of water and I was just sorta floating around in it. It was really weird cause it wasn't like normal water and after awhile I came to this really weird tree! Then I saw this rose in the hollow," Amelia took out a beautiful green rose before continuing. "And when I touched it the tree ended up... well, kind of closing in on me, but it felt really nice and warm. After that, I woke up on a staircase further from here."

Amelia continued to recount on how she got lost in a maze for a while, collected some fish looking key, and then accidentally released the stick men army from the book that she had with her. "They're actually pretty vicious, especially the red ones. They won't go back into the book so its best to avoid them if possible. Oh, by the way, I have these with me!"

Amelia pulled out a few wrapped cracker packets from her bag. "There's enough for each of us to tie us over for the moment. Ummm, are any of you allergic to peanuts?"

Once the two shook their heads she handed each a packet before inhaling her own. As they nibbled on their own food, actually feeling rather famished, they shared a look. "Hey! Stop sharing those looks. They're starting to make me think that you're both hiding something-which I know ya are! Spill it! Where the heck is this and why in blazin' hell did you come here?"

Garry sighed, knowing that it would be better for Ib to explain it. Amelia seemed to like her better. Ib gave in and told Amelia everything. She told her about their first day here, about Kate, the whole entire package deal. Garry was relatively surprised that Amelia seemed to be taking it well so far, she hadn't even interrupted once. He sighed inwardly, knowing that there was no way to get Amelia uninvolved with the whole situation, in fact, it might be better. The girl seemed to remember Kate on some level so maybe there was a secret to this whole disappearance thing.

Once Ib finished it was silent for a few minutes. Amelia stared down at her food, almost unsure if she wanted to finish it after hearing about Carrie. She shrugged and ate the last bite, "I see, so you're looking for Kate in this messed up place. Well, I want to say that cha all are crazy, which you are by the way, but I guess I'm crazy too. I didn't know Kate all that well, but she was a friend of yours and Lumi's, so count me in!"

"Amelia, this isn't something to take lightly. If you lose all the petals on your rose then something horrible could happen to you!" Garry reminded her, a bit worried, but was just mainly testing her.

She rolled her eyes at him, "So? I just won't lose all of them, simple as that. Besides, someone has to make sure you don't try to pull a fast one on my poor Ib!" Garry could only sigh at her antics, reminding himself that the girl meant well. However, after being smacked with a tome, it was  _very_ hard.

"Well, what are we waiting for? We should go look for Kate and find this Mary girl right away! Man, I hope we don't miss lunch, those crackers won't tie me over for very long." Ib smiled as she helped Garry to his feet, making the man smile lightly at her. Amelia by no means was his favorite person to be around, given that she always hit him, but she seemed capable of cheering Ib up, which was important to him since he couldn't be upset if Ib was smiling.

He nearly paused at his thoughts, but didn't dwell on them. He didn't need Amelia yelling at him for slowing them down. However, he didn't need to as Amelia paused halfway down the hallway.

"Hey guys, just how are we going to find Kate anyway? Are we looking for a person or a painting?"

Ib and Garry paused, they hadn't really thought about it. At this point, how should they expect to find Kate? Most things in this place appeared to be hostile and Kate may not even be in physical form anymore.

"Both. We'll look for both."

* * *

The cloaked figure crossed the dimming room, only sparing a glance at the large display. The groundwork was still fresh, the ingredients and paints never dulling or drying out. The beauty would forever be frozen as it is, but something was rather wrong with the display. Something that wasn't meant to move.

He grinded his teeth in anger at the fact that the display was missing one of its vital pieces. It was all  _that_ girl's fault! She was ruining everything here and trying to bring about utter Ragnarök! She should  _never_ have awoken again! This wasn't right!

They cursed to themselves, his eyes shifting back to his task at hand. He needed to find that insolent brat, Mary. She would be able to give him some entertainment and may even lead him to the intruders who are so rudely running about. He smiled to himself, yes, this would be rather nice.

He chuckled to himself as he walked up the long staircase, deciding at the last moment to take a small detour. He rather liked checking in on new pieces. He finished ascending the flights and peered into the barred room, feeling satisfied when he spied the crumpled girl on the floor, a petal-less rose in her hand.

How funny it was that she was chosen. Then again, all trespassers must be punished, especially those that do not belong. He continued to survey the room, feeling agitated that the process wasn't moving along quicker. However, the frame beneath the girl was beginning to soak in her essence, which was enough for the moment.

He moved away from the bars and pulled the hood over his head. Yes, he should really go find Mary and the others. He smiled to himself, there were two new visitors today. Perhaps, he should go greet the one still wandering around the halls.

Mind made up, he walked past the display and cast one last glance at it before pausing and retracting and going over to it. He let his hand slowly entwine itself with the long locks of perfectly brushed hair. He brought it to his lips and kissed it, "Continue to sleep, my dear."

He gently caressed her face for a lingering moment before turning away. Once he was out of sight, a lone tear slide down the porcelain face.

_Soon._


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ib and Amelia talk. Garry meets a familiar face.

In art the best is good enough.

-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

 

Flickering bulbs, lit in rows lead the way to abysmal slumber. Shadows draw closer, curtains to shows unseen, shows of monstrous freaks or weeping angels whom never sleep. Small pitter patters echo round, flinging longer shadows onto doors. Dark shades bristle the edges, growing brighter, darker, larger by the step. Whispering faintly is the void, ghosting gently behind, seeing with eyes unclouded, glassy white, opaque orbs.

Vermilion drops bleed through, dripping from the cup of fate. Love lay bleeding, needing, a greedy little thing. It sucks the bones dry, yearning for more. It stalks, twitching and mangled, rotten teeth covered in brown liquid rust drip from its unhinged jaw. It's distorted face has no eyes, only abysmal pools of coal, staring at everything...yet nothing at all.

Cracks echoed loudly down the hall, a hazy blur rapidly moves, a twisting grueling nose of a putrid color lifts and gives a loud snuff, followed by a few more. Rotten teeth behind cracked lips split into a gnarled, ghastly smile. There is a blur, a flicker of light fixtures, and then nothing.

Out of sight, out of mind, but crawling near the edge of realms only heard of in the land of the dead.

* * *

Amelia proudly stepped forwards, her shoes making small thumps against the carpeted floor the colour of wine. Ib stood just to the side of her, partly behind. Standing on Ib's other side was Garry, who was throwing cautious glances to and from, waiting for something to pop out at them. Amelia stalked towards the corner, slinking along the side of the wall. Carefully, she peered around the edge and lifted the tome with both hands so that it was open.

All was silent for just a moment before she let out a loud battle cry and pounced upon some black stick figures who had doodled on the floor. They jumped in surprise at the intrusion, some taking flight while others stood stock still. Amelia landed on the floor, as if she were a baseball player trying to catch a ball, and slammed the heavy book on top of her little victims. She hurried to her knees and slammed the book multiple times on any of the figures that dared draw near to her.

Only a few managed to escape down the corridor, followed by a door slamming shut. Amelia got to her feet and brushed some invisible dust off her skirt with one hand. She opened the book and glanced at it, smiling, before holding it up like a prize.

"Only a few more to go!" She smiled brightly and turned back around to continue onwards when she suddenly froze up. Curious, Garry and Ib edged closer to her and took notice of a lone red stick person just a few feet from Amelia.

The two thought back, remembering that the red stick figures weren't like the black ones. They're more dangerous and won't go back into the book. They, realizing the danger, stayed very still to see what would happen.

The red-figure gave a squeaky, shrill chuckle that made dread blossom in all three of their chests. The little thing put one of its small, thin red feet forwards and drew a red line and then another. Another. Another. Another.

Amelia backed up, bumping into Ib before grabbing their hands and bolting down another hallway.

"Why are we running?" Garry called out, surpassing Amelia's stride with his longer legs. The girl pouted at this, but then got over it, "Because those things are pure frickin' evil! When they draw with their bodies it's time to book it, duh!"

"What do you mean?" Ib asked, her voice calmer, but a bit forced due to the uneven pace she was going at.

They reached an intersection just as a shrill giggle cackled closer to them. Ib and Amelia went left while Garry kept on going straight. They had just noticed they were splitting up when a large gale filled the hall in between them. Ib and Amelia covered their eyes from the rough winds, skirts flapping around them.

"Hey, we'll meet up again!" Amelia screamed out, her voice muffled by the wind, but Garry heard.

"Be careful you two!"

Ib wanted to return the warning back to him, but Amelia was already dragging her down the hall as the gale picked up speed. All she could do was glance back, catching a glimpse of Garry's retreating back before he disappeared from her line of sight. An ache blossomed in her chest, something that made her stomach drop painfully, but also nostalgia, as if she had experienced this before.

The crazy running ceased some time later once they could no longer hear the falsetto laughs of a deranged red stick figure. Ib panted as she leaned against her knees, Amelia leaned against the golden wallpaper and tried to even out her breaths, her thoracic cavity pulsating as were nearly every muscle in her legs. She let out a small half laugh, half sigh before slumping to the floor and taking out her rose, surprised it hadn't fallen during the run, but a few petals were missing.

Ib took out her own rose, ruby-red, and noticed four missing from it. She sighed inwardly, her suspicions further proven by the recent events. For each injury a petal would disappear and only those strange vases could be counted upon to restore them to their formerly healthy condition. She mentally counted the incidents in which would cause her rose to lose petals. She cringed at the memory of Carrie's body and all the petals she had lost while trapped in the demented storybook.

"Hey, Ib, I think this hallway might loop around back to wherever Garry may be," Ib looked over at Amelia who was staring at something down the hall, "I think I came through one of these doors when I followed you guys earlier."

Ib merely nodded, still feeling tired from the long run. She trailed Amelia down the hallway, glancing at paintings that dotted the walls here and there. The brunette looked at Amelia, noticing how quiet the other girl was being. That wasn't right, Amelia would normally be trying to diffuse the tension with some sort of rant or antic. Well, at least that is what Ib had observed.

They paused at a few doors and tried the locks, but they didn't budge an inch. Amelia started to hum lightly, glancing around for any clue on just how to get into any of the rooms. Her eyes spotted a table further down and she hurried over to it, opening its single drawer and taking out a strange gem the colour of onyx.

"Woa, this is really pretty!" Amelia turned to show it to Ib. The brunette assessed the stone before something akin to realization dawned upon her. "I think that's the key."

The other girl gave her a quizzical look, "What do you mean?"

Ib backtracked them to a shimmering granite door that hadn't a door knob. However, at the top of the door was a small circular indentation deep enough for a stone to fit in. Amelia gaped, unsure of how she had missed  _that_! It was shiny and eye-catching! She glanced down at the stone and lifted herself up on her tip-toes, but fell short by a few inches.

"Hey, climb up on my shoulders and put this in." Ib looked over at Amelia in surprise, her eyebrows slightly lifted in both surprise and hesitation.

She gave her a reassuring smile and leaned down, "Don't worry! I won't drop you, promise." She held out her pinky and locked it with Ib's to validate her promise before leaning back down, "Now hurry up, kay?"

Ib took the gem from her and hesitantly stepped on her shoulders,her hands climbing the walls as Amelia slowly stood up to her full height. "Wow, you really aren't all that heavy!" Ib blushed at the compliment as she unsteadily reached up to place the stone in the hole. It slid into place with a soft  _click_.

The granite door rumbled, causing Amelia to nearly drop Ib before hurrying to let her down. They held to each other as the room quaked. Bits of the ceiling flaked off, raining down on the two. A larger part smashed down, thwacking Amelia in the head before cracking in half and landing on the floor.

Once the shaking stopped Ib quickly evaluated Amelia, noticing another three green petals on the ground. Her eyebrows scrunched in worry at this before locking eyes with Amelia who had her mouth hanging open as she stared at something behind her. Ib turned her head to see and was relatively surprised to see the granite door was now gone, leaving a large black hole in its stead.

After a few moments of brief discussion they walked into the opening, ducking low after Amelia smashed her forehead against the drooping ceiling. She rubbed her forehead as they walked through the cavern, "They should really have some warning signs! Hey, Ib, did I ever tell you about the time I saw a real ghost?"

"No, I don't believe so."

Amelia clapped her hands in the dim lighting, "Well, it happened when I was around twelve and I had gone on a school camping trip, I think. Anyway, while there we happened to overhear about this haunted cavern deep in the woods. The story goes something like this: In a busy town there once was a young upper class woman who had just stormed from her house due to a fight with some of her family. She went into the forest to calm down and so that no one would see her cry. As she sat against an oak she suddenly heard footsteps draw closer to her. When she glanced up from between her arms she saw a man wearing a strange noh mask on his face. He stood not far off and once noticed he stepped forwards and started to juggle, but dropped the balls on his head. Next, he broke into some type of mime like stunts, before presenting the girl a flower. At that moment she had smiled, her tears forgotten.

"For many months the girl would religiously watch him perform on the streets for pedestrians, always laughing at his antics and how he made others laugh too, and he was her distraction from home life. Suitors had flocked to her home, wanting to marry her and take her away, but she turned most of them down. However, one was stubborn and refused to back off. He happened to follow her into town and noticed her longing gaze directed at the masked man. He was furious and stormed off to gather more information."

Amelia paused, and Ib waited for her to continue.

"He found out that the masked stranger worked at a circus permanently located in the cavern due to the atmosphere and mystery it presented. He followed the girl there and then snuck backstage. Just as the masked boy was crossing the highwire he cut the cords keeping it taut, and the masked boy fell."

"What happened to him?" Ib asked, but knew the story wouldn't be having a happy ending.

"He hit the ground and the woman sprang forwards and cradled him in her arms. The mask had come off during the fall and he was smiling at her with his eyes closed. Her tears dripped onto his face and he opened his eyes as he realized she was crying over him. He whispered a string of sentences to her before smiling again, his eyes closing shut. They say the circus was closed down after and the woman killed herself a week later, wanting to be with him again."

"Pierrot." The two girls whipped around in surprise at the sudden voice. The lights had grown dimmer and dimmer the further they walked in, making the newcomer nearly invisible to their eyes, but they recognized that voice.

"Luno, what in blazin' hell are you doing here?" Amelia exclaimed, throwing an accusatory finger at him in both surprise and disbelief, her story long forgotten. She even turned to Ib to make sure she wasn't delusional.

The blonde's eye roll was lost to Amelia in the dark, "I followed you down the hall. Mind explaining where the heck we are? Wasn't Garry with you?"

"We're in what might be another plane, like in those weird sci-fi movies and we're looking for Kate, remember her?"

"I never forgot her."

"Wah, then why didn't you say anything earlier when the others were denying her existence?!" Amelia stomped her foot indignantly. Luno shrugged, "I hadn't deemed it necessary at the time."

Luno turned to Ib, "You and Garry have been here before I presume?"

Ib nodded, "What do you think this place is then?"

"It may be another place created to exist within our own, the doors we came from acting as a portal." Ib stated, but Amelia stopped her from saying anymore by pulling her to her side.

"How do we know you're really Luno and not some imposter?"

Luno seemed surprised at her doubt, but then seemed to give her a tiny smile, "That's very wise of you to be suspicious of me. However, I am not an imposter," he paused only a few seconds before continuing, "We met through Liam during dinner when you walked into the men's bathroom by mistake, you then hit it off with my sister and thus became a constant during my breakfast, lunch, and even dinner hours regardless if my sister is there or not. You also sent Ib to the infirmary on her first day, throw food at Dmitri, and-"

"You can stop now!" Amelia yelled, covering his mouth with both her hands to shut him up, "I get it, it's you! Sheesh, you don't have to blab my life story or what colour underwear I'm wearing!"

"Blue."

Amelia paused, eyes wide before jumping back, "How the hell did you know?"

Ib watched the two bicker back and forth, noting that it was lighter than the fights Amelia and Dmitri got into. These were lighter jabs centered around their long presence in the other's life, even if that means that Luno knew Amelia's underwear colour simply due to "intuition" as he put it. Ib smiled at them, letting out a small laugh.

The two stopped and looked over at her, somewhat surprised at that fact that  _Ib_ had  _giggled_. Never before had she done it in their presence. "Awe, you have a cute little laugh!" Amelia swamped her in a hug, obsessing over her "baby." Ib blushed at this, but didn't move. Luno casted her an amused look, "You should laugh more. Though I can see how Amelia's antics would become rather bland after some time."

"Half-bun!"

He raised a delicate pale brow, "Name calling, really?"

"So do you use conditioner on those beautiful curls?"

"Yes, evidently more than you do for yours."

Amelia laughed, "Do you like your hair long all over or just on your head?"

Luno gave another half smile, which was still invisible due to the ever dimming lighting. "Where is your other party member?"

"We were separated," Ib stated. Amelia took over explaining about the stick figures given that she knew the most about them and released them. After, Ib explained more about Kate and the whole package deal she gave Amelia not too long ago. Luno calmly listened the whole way through, not batting an eye much at Carrie, but he did try to unsuccessfully hide a snort when Amelia started ranting about how Garry was ravaging Ib under the pretense of trying to get the stick figures out of the brunette's shirt.

"They both seem dense enough," He mumbled almost inaudibly as he composed himself. "Oh, by the way, do you have a rose too? How did you get it? Was it like ours or more like Garry's?"

Luno paused, "It was more like Garry's, but also like yours." He took out a lavender rose, the color nearly glowing opalescent in the last sliver of lighting. "I obtained mine by wandering through a black space for an unknown amount of time until I saw this rose illuminated and I headed towards it. I had to climb up large plateaus and once I touched it the space around me caved inwards, and then I awoke in this cavern."

Ib and Amelia payed close attention to his explanation, nodding at the appropriate times as their minds drew parallels and processed the whole event. After this Amelia was the first to speak, "Is there a way out of here? The light is going down and if you've already come from this way then maybe we should head back out."

Luno and Ib looked over at her, thinking it over.

"Perhaps there is a way out further in, more so than I already was. It would be in our better interest to proceed further in until we can safely assume that there isn't a way out. The only problems are finding a way back and not having a light source."

Amelia perked up at this, "I have just the thing!" She dug through her bag and pulled out a small portable flashlight, "I always keep one on me due to photography! It's easier to cast shadows where I need them."

Ib and Luno sweatdropped, "Isn't that cheating?"

"Nope," Amelia stated slowly, "Anyway, we now only have a problem in finding the way back if we have to take turns or loop around."

"I believe I have a solution for that one, "Luno pulled out a pack of thin thread from one of his own pockets. He went over to a large stalagmite and wrapped some of the thread around it. "We can use the thread as metaphorical bread crumbs to lead up back."

"Wow, that's nifty!" Amelia commented as she leaned on Ib, looking both excited but bored.

"Let's get going,"  _Garry is all alone_ , Ib kept her thoughts to herself as she walked further into the darkening cavern with the two, unsure of what would be awaiting her in that foreign space.

* * *

Garry passed another doodle, warily keeping an ear out for the giggling of a crazed stick figure or anything else in the gallery that was hellbent on chasing or attacking him. Really, it all was becoming quite tiring. His legs were still pulsating from the long sprint, the muscles stretched out and building. His feet felt heavy and piercing on the linoleum floor.

The lavanderette sighed to himself. He had been made to separate from his friends and his only consolation was that there were two of them; Ib wouldn't be alone. However, he didn't like being by himself either. Already hands had shot out of the wall and tried to hit him, thus resulting in losing a few petals. Also, he had managed to find a vase to restore his withered rose, making him feel much better.

Now he walks the hallway, looking for keys, doors, his friends, and maybe even Kate. He was having no such luck as most of the doors were locked, Ib and Amelia are probably heading in another direction, and Kate was still an enigma...he barely even knew just what he was looking for! Kate was a mystery to him, but he believed Ib when she told him, and Amelia had backed her statement by confirming that Kate does exist...or at least  _used_ to.

Garry shoved the negative thought away, not wanting to dwell on the possibility that Kate could already be too far gone, if she was ever here at all. He passed by a mannequin, its two beady eyes following him. He shivered at the lingering gaze, but only quickened his pace.  _It's only a head, it's only a head._

The lavenderette noticed an alcove and hurried over to it, surprised to find a large mannequin body is a simple short red dress blocking his way. Behind the prop was a narrow doorway that looked highly promising. Feeling luck on his side, Garry went to pick up the statue in order to move it aside, but it didn't quite go as he had planned. First of all, the mannequin started wriggling, it's long slender black arms wrapping around his neck. Then Garry freaked out and dropped the mannequin like a hot potato and proceeded to back away as it got to its feet.

The freakiest part of the whole thing was that the mannequin didn't have a head. So when it turned in Garry's direction and seemed to glower at him, the lavenderette was highly confused. The red clad mannequin stepped closer to his, mirrored by Garry taking a step back in response. This continued for another few steps until the mannequin lunged at him. Garry took off down the hall, increasing his pace as footfalls thundered behind him.

It seemed to Garry, that he was doing an awful amount of running these days. Running and always having to get up. It was rather taxing, but he didn't dare stop. Garry wasn't an idiot nor was he deaf to the footsteps starting to catch up to him. He couldn't recall ever being so nervous, fearful, and tired...well, that was a lie. He could remember a time when he felt all of those.

Garry tried to push those memories from his mind, but they persisted shamelessly. His body started to feel haggard and retard. His breathing came out heavier as sweat accumulated on his brow and slowly trickled down past his eye duct, tickling the attentive skin. He itched to wipe it away, but doing that would force him to slow down and then that mannequin would catch him. Trying his best to ignore it, he continued down the hallway before noticing the dead end.

Taking a leap of fate, Garry veered towards one of the doors that happened to dot the wall on one side, praying that the brass knob would rotate fully and open the door. The washed out gray look of the door made him doubtful at first, but he turned and pushed, nearly awed when it opened with a long  _creeeeaaaaak!_  Despite how ugly the shrill sound was it was beautiful music to the young man. He hurried inside and promptly shut the door behind him. He leaned his weight against it as what he assumed to be the mannequin tried the knob but, once realizing it was being locked, pounded on the door tumultuously.

He struggled to keep the mannequin out but his brute force and patience won out; the mannequin quit its futile banging and Garry could hear the footsteps retreat, growing further and further away. The hallway and room were filled with silence soon after as Garry slowly slid to the floor as he tried to even out his breaths. He rubbed at the sweatdrops on his face, the moisture cold and clammy as his shaky hands wiped the dollops away.

Garry took out his rose and stared at it, but knew his fatigue wasn't caused by the missing petal he had just lost. No, it had to do with his earlier thoughts. He hugged his knees to his chest, taking out his lighter and flipping open the lid. His thumb slid against the little clicker, thus igniting the gas inside it and creating a flickering golden flame. He flipped it closed and then repeated the process as his mind drifted.

He had felt an overwhelming sense of fear, tiredness, and nervousness before...or at least from what he  _could_ remember. It had happened just a few years ago...he didn't remember anything, but his family had informed him that he had been hit by a car. When he had awoken he barely remembered his own name and he had been terrified. He still is. All the possibilities and the lies and his own fallible memories that had returned to him...were they even real? Who was he, really? Is he still himself? How could he know for sure?

Months after the accident he slowly began to remember little things, one being his name and a sense that he was missing something. Strangely, this whole place and Ib gave him a sense of nostalgia that he couldn't place. Ib. When he thought about her it felt like he'd known her for a lifetime rather than a few days. It scared him just how much he trusted her. Yet, he was also guilty of using her...this place terrifies him, yet he's the one who suggested they come back. At first, he had wanted to know why he felt so drawn, yet weary of this place, but then it morphed into the disappearance of the fashion student Kate Gridlings.

He didn't want anyone to get hurt, not even Amelia. He rather enjoyed being around Soaru, Dmitri, Luno, Amelia, Lumi, Gillian, some other acquaintances from his classes, and Ib. Yes, he thought Amelia and Gillian were a bit...eccentric, but he still liked watching them make others smile, especially Ib. That's the main reason he wasn't too put off with Amelia's sudden appearance. Of course he didn't want an innocent bystander to get involved, but he felt just a small bit better that he and Ib were not alone in all of this. It was selfish of him, he knows, but those are just his conflicted feelings on the subject.

The light from the flame calmed him for the moment and so Garry pocketed the small lighter. He stood up and surveyed the room for the first time. It was somber and melancholy, the lighting barely casting rays of light across the shadowy room. He could make out rows of display bookcases in the back while in the front were regular shelf bookcases lined in complex rows. Oddly, some on the shelves were cracked and decrepit. He slowly walked over and gingerly picked up one of the books that were haphazardly strewn across the floor.

When he picked it up the bottom part crumbled off into charcoal, leaving part of his lower fingers and palm blackened. His eyes widened as he slowly noticed the anomaly around him. The bookcases and books were horribly charred in certain areas and mild in others. Garry looked through another burned shelf, determined to find at least one book that was still readable. He picked up a few from a disorganized pile and looked through them, deducting that at least two of them were still somewhat intelligible.

For an unknown period of time Garry scavenged through the charred remains of what once was probably a small library. He managed to salvage around four books in the end. He seated himself at the center of the room after barricading the door with a few planks of stray wood. Garry gingerly flipped open the first book, its cover charred cyan and nearly missing entirely. The first few pages were blackened beyond prepare, but the next few were ample enough for him, if not somewhat irking. The first excerpt read:

" _More valuable than sharing existence is making fantasies into reality."_

Garry pursed his lips a bit, unsure of what the sentence meant due to the rest of the page being unreadable. He flipped a few of the pages and continued reading the fragmented excerpts.

" _You and the rose are unified._

_Know the weight of your own life."_

He skipped to the bottom,  _"When the rose wilts so will you too rot away."_

The rest of the book was too damaged that nothing else could be read. He put the book off to the side and picked up another book bound in green gauze and brown leather. He found it to be a type of record book that documented works.

" _Enlightenment (6185)"_

_a side view of a person's eye..._

_Found in Guer...home._

_Charcoal was applied directly to the canvas. Unfortunately, it suffered some damage._

Garry couldn't help notice the irony. The work was apparently damaged and this book was also damaged, which is rather humorous. However, he felt a heavy feeling of nostalgia, especially from the earlier book which were, most likely, about their roses.

Shrugging off the feeling, he continued to read for awhile, going through each book carefully and trying to piece together strings of words that possibly fit the charred sentences. After some time he finished looking through them, rubbing his temples from the complete mind fuck he just went through. He barely understood anything! All of it was awfully vague or about certain paintings, a few of which he had seen in this place. He sighed, laying down on his back for a few minutes as he let the information sink in. He understood more about the roses, having already undergone the experience of losing petals, and that was basically it. Parts of sentences were burnt off, words were smudged with soot, or ripped out.

It was irritating how clueless he felt; not to mention helpless. Well, he was rather thankful that Amelia and Ib were together. He didn't want to think about what it would be like if just Ib and himself were separated. His stomach dropped at the very thought of them being separated without another party member with at least one of them.

Garry tucked the books into his cloak, deciding to show Ib and Amelia when they met up again. Now, just how was he supposed to find them? This place was much like a maze and always seems different whenever they arrived. The way that got out was also rather strange as they landed in a different location than the one they entered from.

Garry placed an ear to the door and listened for any sudden movement. The light in back of him flickered and then blinked out. Garry jumped at being thrown into sudden darkness before hearing a strange scratching and scurrying sound come from the other side of the door. He took a careful step back as it grew louder, the back of his foot stepping on the plank which snapped in half.

There was a sudden pregnant pause.

The door was smashed in, a discordant roar shattering the air around him. It was too dark for him to see whatever had just entered, but all his hair was erect as fear swelled through his body, hot and cold. He stood stock still and stopped breathing when his nose picked up something worse than rotten eggs and milk inside a rotting garbage can. What was worse; it was coming right from in front of him.

Hot, putrid breath harshly blew onto his face, the force and proximity making his tresses sway a little. A scream rose in his throat and stayed there, frozen due to his sheer terror. He didn't dare move or even take a breath, fearful that just twitching his finger would be too loud. Whatever was in front of him started sniffing the air before tensing while staring right at Garry.

In a feeble moment Garry was thrown onto the floor, wood cracking underneath him. He blinked and his back slammed against a wall. It took awhile for the sound to catch up, but he heard his lighter hit the floor with a  _thunk_. He blindly reached for it just as a large hand wrapped around his foot and pulled him up by his ankle.

Garry hung there, the books sliding from his coat and hitting the floor. The thing breathed harshly, as if it couldn't have enough air, and let out a loud shrill screech, some spit hitting Garry's face. He grimaced just before the adrenaline kicked in. Without too much forethought he opened his lighter and flicked the knob. A golden red and blue based flame sprung up and onto the creatures hand that was holding Garry's ankle.

It screeched in pain, dropping Garry as it fled to a darker section of the room. Garry crab walked backwards, the hand holding the lighter shaking as his eyes were still wide from the grotesque image that had just imprinted itself into his mind forever.

Garry crawled over towards the door, his eyes never leaving the outline of the creature. It turned toward him and screamed out in what might have been anger. Garry crawled into the hallway and continued crawling until the hallways were brighter. He collapsed against the wall, his body shaking as he ran a hand through his hair before gripping the sides of his tresses and putting his head between his drawn up legs. His whole body was shaking as tears rose to his eyes. He had been so terrified. That  _thing,_ whatever it was, could have easily killed him if it wasn't for his lighter!

He stopped himself from rocking by taking calm, deep breaths. He had started to feel better and took to his feet, swaying a little but keeping his breathing under control. He made his way back to the alcove and saw that the mannequin was no longer standing before the narrow door. He shakily went over and gripped the knob, trepidation surging through his body. He gulped and started turning the knob when the door was thrown open in front of him.

Gray eyes met blue.

"Garry?"


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garry and a familiar face have a conversation.

"A picture is a secret about a secret, the more it tells you the less you know."

― Diane Arbus

Sequins twinkled from the depths of ocean blue, laughing with two faces; one bitter, the other divine. The macabre mask dotted with truth and lies in a frothy abyss fluxuate, fighting like gladiators of ancient times long ago. Whispering curls cast an umbrage, hiding the conflict from sight, another mask is crafted upon the other, one of bone deep sorrow, distrust, and loathing. A flutter here and there, they melt and meld together, forming one of surprise, mouth opened wide, large pools wide, and the surprise soon fades into choppy waves.

Garry was the first to break the silence, "You're Mary, right?"

The blonde twirled a piece of hair between her thumb and index finger, seeming to contemplate her answer before finally deciding on a small nod and a ghost of a smile, "Yeah, you're Garry, Ib's...friend, right?"

It was a statement, but Garry still nodded at the girl. She was rather short and looked very young, maybe ten or nine years old. Oddly, he found himself comparing her height to Ib's, as Ib barely reached his chest and Mary maybe reached his hip. He pushed the thoughts away and tried to escape the awkward silence that had encased them.

"We haven't figured out how to help you, but maybe if you could tell me some information a solution can be found," he looked down at her, trying to be earnest in his request, but really it was two-sided. He did want to help her but,on the other hand, she probably had valuable information about this place, which he and the others needed more of.

Mary had stopped twirling her hair, the strands now half twisted against her shoulder, and stared up at the lavanderette. Her neutral face split into a smile Garry thought was too happy. "Okay! Follow me!"

She spun on her heel and began to walk away, leaving Garry to follow her through the threshold. Their steps echoed off the tiles, making Garry nervous and fidgety. He shifted his eyes constantly, still very weary. He nearly screeched when Mary had suddenly stopped, causing him to bump into her.

"What's wrong?"

Mary stayed silent.

"Hey, are you-" Garry was cut off as Mary whirled around and began to pull him towards an ugly brown door. She kept ordering him to hurry as she pushed him inside and closed the door, the lock sliding into place behind her. Garry quickly glanced at the interior, realizing it was just another hall. Mary briskly walked in front of him, calling for him to hurry up.

They entered doors that lead to new hallways, into niches that connected to rooms, and finally stopped at two large white and black doors. The pattern was done in white, contrasting against the smooth granite. It depicted what looked to be a gate around the edges of the door while the inside looked like vines wrapping around something he couldn't make out.

Mary pushed the doors open and they entered a large space. The only light source were from the dim blue lanterns that casted an eerie glow upon a small dirt path. On either side are what looked to be bushes, but Garry couldn't be sure with such terrible lighting. He followed Mary through the path, nearly tripping over his own feet on many occasions. The lighting grew worse the farther they embarked, the lanterns nearly nonexistent. Oddly, Garry felt an overwhelming wave of sadness crash over him.

He looked around and saw that the bushes, or what he believed to be bushes, were steadily decreasing in height. From where he now stood, bad lighting and all, he thought he could make out a large black twisted shadow in the distance. The very shadowy thing fascinated him, making him stop all of a sudden so that he could gaze at it. His feet started off towards it, but just as he touched the hedge a black hand lashed out and grabbed him. Garry flipped out and threw himself backwards, wrenching his hand from the shadow one. He ended up doing a backwards somersault and stayed on the ground to catch his breath. He facepalmed, knowing that it would have been too easy if he could just walk across this silly maze-like space.

Mary looked back at Garry, pursing her lips in agitation. She stomped over, but kept a safe distance, "Let's go."

"Where are we going anyway?" He asked, sitting up and looking over at her.

Mary stayed silent. Her gaze was averted, staring at the black mass in the distance. Garry stayed seated, but he felt...off, like something was going to happen soon. He just didn't know who or what would cause it.

Still staring into the distance Mary began to speak, "Did you know that yellow roses have many different meanings? I do, there are a lot and sometimes I wonder just what they all mean. I thought yellow was a happy colour, but I wonder if it really is just bitter. I don't much like the colour anymore, it doesn't make me happy, it reminds me of something bad, a really terrible thing that hurt a lot."

"Do you really not remember what you did?" Mary's tone was angry as she glared at the lavenderette, tears wallowing in her eyes. "I hate you, Garry! I  _really_   _really_  hate you!"

She covered her eyes, trying to wipe away the loud drops that cascaded down her face. Garry hadn't any idea as to what she was going on about, but the longer he stared the more it seemed that he could see something  _wrong_ about Mary. The lighting was so dim, yet he could see it clearly, all the things that were  _off_.

Mary was...she isn't human. His mind screamed this at him, large red signs going off in his head that she was dangerous but...she looked so broken. Her dress, once a vibrant green, was frayed like it had been burned and her shoes had large black burn marks decorating them, and her white tights were yellowed. Wisps of blonde hair were damaged so that they were stiff and almost discoloured. Her face, on the left side, was cracked and started from her ear and spread to her temple and lower jaw. The right side started from her hairline and ran down vertically to her neck. It all nearly looked like creased paper, wrinkly and old, but then Garry's eyes played the ultimate trick and the girl in front of him caught on fire, her screams echoing in his head.

He blinked and it all disappeared. He didn't know what to make of this, any of it, but he had a feeling that he had done something. However, he had an underlying feeling that it was something he  _had_ to do. Perhaps...he was the one who had burned Mary, that would explain why she claims to hate him and, if he wasn't just crazy, why he could clearly visualize her being set on fire. His lighter felt abnormally warm in his pocket and he sighed, running a hand through his hair. He didn't get any of this!

"Mary, I don't remember anything. I know that's no excuse, but...I...please tell me...what I did."

Mary sniffled, all the anger leaving her after her fit. She now felt exhausted and looked at Garry, unsure if he was sincere. Yet, the remorseful and confused look on his face made her _want_ to believe him. He looked so beat up and frustrated. She looked down at her hands, remembering the events at the gallery. It wasn't all his fault...she...she had tried to kill him. Mary knew she would have hurt them, but she was selfish and wanted to leave her cage. To do that, she had to off one of them and Ib was closer to her in age and she was nicer. They could have been best friends or even sisters! She hadn't seen anything in Garry, yet he only looked a few years older than the last time she saw him, but Ib was way older now, probably nearer to Garry's age.

How could this be? Garry and Ib had an age gap last time she met them...why did only Ib change so much? Could this be because...?

Mary's eyes lit up at the realization.

"We met before. You set my painting on fire and destroyed me." Mary bitterly stated. Hey, she could still be mad about being  _lit on fire_! "Before you ask how I'm still alive, I'll tell you; all of his artwork is gathered in this place. You can call it the Gallery, but it has many names. This is the core of our existence, you might call it our  _home_."

"Why here? Was your...creator from here?" Garry felt awkward when he spoke about creators to Mary as it made her seem inhuman...which she kinda was.

Mary nodded, "All of here came from one artists, our father. The reason our home is here is because this is where  _it_ rests."

"It?" Garry inquired.

Mary pointed to the large shadow in the distance, "That is the core of our home where  _it_ sleeps. This place here is the garden and is supposed to be full of colour, but, as you can see, it's overrun with thorns and there isn't any light."

"Why? What does this mean?"

Mary hesitated, "In the beginning, father was always obsessed with infusing himself into his works so that he could live on. He created  _it_ to house all of the life and energy that was infused into making us and also so that when outsiders such as yourself entered they would be swept up and either die or become like us, but different. For example, Kate was dragged here because she has been here before-"

"What?!" Garry yelled, leaning forwards in surprise. Mary nodded and sat down, her legs feeling tired.

"Yeah, Kate and some others were here long before you guys. That's why she was taken back here, she was a vessel."

"A vessel?" Garry could feel a pit growing in his stomach at the word.

Mary nodded solemnly, "A vessel that is meant for  _it._  If you die here then your life energy is transferred to  _it_."

"Why can't we just do something about this  _it_ , then?" Garry knew he was panicking, but he couldn't help himself. He felt like he was in some sci-fi or horror movie and he'd just been told that in order to survive he needed to inject himself with poison that should kill him and then jump across a canyon with a pogo stick. Well, maybe not  _that_ extreme, but it still was a lot to take in.

"You can't!  _It_ isn't bad! I knew  _it_ for a bit and they were really nice. It's just... _it_ isn't awake anymore. After Father's death,  _it_ fell into a deep sleep!" Mary argued frantically. Garry was taken aback, but then shame crashed over him. His first thought had been to destroy the problem. He felt disgusted with himself for even thinking about destroying something. What if they were like Mary? She may be a painting, but she seemed pretty human...but should he even trust her?

He pondered this, weighing the pros and cons. Yet, he felt sick either way. Garry in no way trusted Mary, but he also didn't hate her. What had happened, happened. He couldn't do anything about his past actions but maybe he could turn things around this time.

'Mary, you said you're stuck here. right? Why would you say that if you belong here?" Garry was genuinely curious. Mary wasn't human, so wouldn't she feel safer around other non-humans.

"I may not be human like you and Ib, but that doesn't make me anything less! I want to be human, to live outside where you do, but I can't. In order to get out, I have to take someone's place. It's an exchange of energy. In order to give me a human body that would allow me to leave, an outsider would have to stay here and take my place until they die or...turn," Mary's frown deepened, "So, I'm stuck here."

"Why do you want to get out so bad, don't you...like it here?" The idea of  _liking_ anything about this place didn't sit well with Garry, but he felt the need to ask.

Mary shrugged, "Many of the others here once were like me, they didn't chase outsiders and try to get their roses, and sometimes they remain lucid, but when they see a rose they go ballistic. I don't know why, and neither do they, but I'm one of the rare ones who doesn't have this. It makes it hard to talk with them. I want to leave and make friends, eat food, and have fun with others. I don't want to be alone here anymore, especially with that  _thing_  here! He's taken over and picks on me, I really don't like him; he doesn't belong here. He's the reason Kate was taken!"

"Why did he take Kate? Who is he?"

Mary went silent for a long moment, "He is something that another Gallery made and he's not like the rest of us. He took Kate to keep  _it_ at bay so they won't wither. A couple of years ago, something happened to  _it_  and this world hasn't been too stable since. Sometimes, you can feel  _it_ trying to wake up, but he always stops it. None of us know what will happen when the time comes for  _it_ to awaken, but we fear our existence will disappear. I want to get out before then."

Garry remained quiet, processing everything in his head, but there were still bits he couldn't comprehend. Why does Mary refer to this core as  _it_? How is any of this possible? How, if they are turned, are they different than the other occupants? What happened to  _it_ a few years ago? Why did Kate come to the Gallery? Who else was with her? Were they, the people who came with Kate, also in danger? What will happen once  _it_ wakes? The questions jostled around in his head, wanting answers that he had a feeling Mary wouldn't be able give. He had a feeling she was leaving things out, but didn't want to pry. He had enough to try and figure out at the moment.

"I don't know much about anything here or if we can help you find an alternative way out. What I do know is that we have to find Ib and Amelia, locate Kate if we can, and then return back to school to regroup. This way we can think up a strategy, but if you have any more information on Kate I need you to share it with me."

"Okay," Mary spoke softly before clearing her throat, "Kate is located in a tower under the chapel."

Garry tried not to be phased by just how a tower could be  _underneath_ a chapel when he nodded for her to continue.

"However, he governs that part so it's really hard to get to. Now, the chapel is located further down this road on the left side. However, there's a maze between the chapel and the path there. You shouldn't go there by yourself, we shouldn't be here now, come on."

Garry and Mary stood up and hurried down the path, taking a right when they came to the intersection. Garry cast one glance back at the entrance to the chapel's maze, feeling thankful that he knew where Kate was, but remorseful as he couldn't help her yet. His rose was running low on petals and he needed to make sure Ib and Amelia were alright. There also was the fact that Mary's warning kept echoing in his head.

Garry turned his head back around. His choice was made. Amelia might pester him for not going to help Kate, but he knew he wouldn't have been able to do it on his own. He made his decision to turn back and regroup, and he would just have to be content that he had gained some valuable information concerning this Gallery...and his own past.

  


 


	13. Chapter 13

"Whether you succeed or not is irrelevant, there is no such thing.

Making your unknown known is the important thing."

-Georgia O'Keeffe

 

Deep, dark abysmal shadows dance in time to the procession of macabre, jostling gaunt limbs of only the blackest bone. They spin in circles outside the circular void, bright yellow and limited in range. When exposed they freeze, revealing their true faces behind the masks. Upon escaping the void they meld back into the dance of dizzying movements, eaten by the crowd. Cast in the golden void were merely three, refusing the dance in submission. The crowd separated for them with the flick of a light, not wanting the nightmare to end. They spun this for themselves, a dream of being one, of living for a purpose to fulfill.

Amelia cast the torchlight down, revealing uneven ground that they would have to tread carefully over. Ib and Luno gingerly made it across, carefully avoiding any parts that looked uneven, before waiting for Amelia to cross after them. The wheat-haired girl made it across and they continued on for awhile longer.

Water droplets hitting the ground echoed throughout the cavern and their own footsteps resounded back to them. Ib couldn't remember how long that they'd been searching for a way out, she just knew it had been a very long time. Her feet were starting to ache from the constant climbing and walking they were doing, but she didn't complain.

Amelia tripped then. She hit the ground, wincing as she felt herself land on some small pointy rocks, but held tightly to the flashlight. Ib was at her side instantly, helping her to sit up. Luno also came over and took the flashlight to examine the damages. Amelia had scraped her left knee and had some minor cuts on her stomach and arms. A single green rose petal drifted to the floor, causing both Ib and Luno to frown.

Amelia waved them off and stood up, assuring them she was fine before taking the flashlight back ushering them to continue on. Ib ended up having to sidestep a rather sketchy part of the floor, and was horrified when she heard the ground crack behind her. She whirled around and saw the two there, but then they were gone. Panic filled her and Ib was frozen in shock.

After what felt like forever, Ib grabbed the discarded flashlight and shakily held it so that it casted light into the hole. Fear coursed through her body when she didn't see them, "Amelia, Luno."

Her voice was dry, small, and shaky. She tried again, but never received any responses. The possibilities washed over her and hot tears rose to her eyes, but she tried to keep them at bay. She refused to believe that they were dead, seriously injured maybe, but not dead. She reasoned the fall must have made them pass out, that's all...

Ib took a few deep breaths. She needed to get down there to make sure they were okay. Jumping was obviously out of the question so she would have to look for supplies or for another solution. If they were seriously injured they would need medicine but where could she find that?

Water drops echoed further off and Ib's eyes widened. The water here had special properties; maybe there was a vase nearby! She had accidently healed Garry's rose when the water had dripped off her hair. Yes, that's what she needed.

Ib stood up and went to search for the source of the water. She wasn't fully paying attention to the ground and ended up tripping a few times, but numbly got back up and continued on. She had to hurry! What if they were slowly dying or were already dead? What if they were bleeding to death and if she had only been a bit faster than they could have been saved?

Ib didn't realize she was panicking, only that she was terrified of letting either Amelia or Luno die in this place. It would be all her fault! Luno and Amelia had followed her and Garry into this place that was hellbent on killing them. She couldn't live with that, not seeing them or hearing them anymore. It...Ib didn't want to be alone, she'd rather it be her instead. Since she was small, she had always felt like she had lost something, something important and the feeling only doubled since she was nine.

Ib tripped again, skinning her knee, before rising back to her feet. A few tears threatened to fall, but Ib wiped them away. She had to find that water...to save them...so she wouldn't lose something important to her, again.

The thunderous sound of droplets crashing to the cavern floor led her towards a small walkway that radiated blue light. She stepped into the narrow passageway, squeezing her way to the other end. She tested the water with her own rose, overjoyed when it was restored. Now, just how was she to get the water back to Luno and Amelia? She didn't have anything to put the water in...

Ib came to the realization she needed and submerged herself in the water before quickly pulling out and leaving. The cold air inside the cavern was intensified as it ran along her wet clothing, chilling her. Goosebumps rose along her arms, but Ib ignored the sensation in favor of trying to find her way back.

She fumbled along for a few minutes before Luno's thread glinted in the light. She followed the path back to the hole and began to climb down. Her nails dug into the dirt and she kicked into the wall for foot placements, the flashlight was held between her teeth, and she could feel herself run out of placements. Taking a deep breath, Ib let go and hit the ground, her back protested when she sat up, but Ib was merely thankful the hole was just twelve feet tall so the impact wasn't as bad.

She stood and shone the light around as trepidation swept through her, the light slid off corners and Ib could clearly see rose petals in lavender and green peppering the floor. Her stomach tightened painfully and she wanted to throw up. There were too many petals...

She traced the petals, leading her up to the back wall where she could make out Amelia and Luno resting against it. She ran over to them, stopping just mere feet from them as more panic crashed over her followed by a cold realization. She could see the stems of their roses.

All the petals were gone.

"A-Amelia, Lun-no," Ib whispered, her hand out stretched towards them as she inched closer. She called for them again and again, each time louder than the previous. She slid to her knees right before them, bowing her head. Ib didn't care if Amelia sent her to the nurse every morning, talked too loudly, wouldn't get up, spit in her food (though she never had or would), talked about food constantly, hit Garry, or even hated her! Ib didn't know Luno too well, but she wanted to be friends with him, even if he hated her or ever forgot her.

Ib wanted them to live.

She would give anything to just see them smile or have them bicker! Take her arm, a leg, or even her sight! She just wanted them back!

She wrung her hair out over the roses, even doing the same with her shirt, skirt, socks, and emptying out her shoes to try and get any water at all, but it all seemed to dry up. She took the stems and held them close, but it was all gone. She tucked them in with her own inside her shirt and attempted to scale the wall. If she couldn't bring the water, then she would take the flowers to the water.

Her first twenty attempts were in vain as she was too short to reach her previous stepping stools. She looked around and started gathering up stones to try and use. The pile was horribly irregular and shaky, but Ib didn't much care. She took a running start and jumped, one hand latching on while the rocks gave way under her feet. Ib dragged herself up, her arms protesting and threatening to let go, but she kept trying until she managed to reach the top after the fortieth attempt.

Her arms pulsated and her legs protested as she followed the thread back the way she came, looking for the small opening. She prayed it would still be there as she advanced towards the area, relief flooding her once she saw the blue lights. She squeezed back into the small space and held all three flowers out into the stream. She was momentarily blinded as the two bloomed to life, her own simply being revived, again.

She hurried back, fear and hope surging through her as she ran. Upon reaching the end of the thread, the hole had vanished and Ib's heart dropped. The flashlight showed her the truth of the situation and the two were nowhere in sight. Ib remained there, frozen. She had been too late.

"Ib!? Is that you?"

Aforementioned girl whirled around, the light showing her Amelia and Luno. Large tears rose to her eyes as she took them in, praying this wasn't some sort of joke. Her legs moved before her brain had processed what she was doing, and she threw herself onto them, hot tears of anxiety, fear, and relief all mixed into salty droplets cascading down her face.

To say Luno and Amelia were surprised would be an understatement. They knew that all their petals had fallen off, which probably scared Ib, but they hadn't expected anything like this. The two held the crying girl, Amelia joining in as she too had been terrified. She had taken what Garry told her seriously, but she couldn't stop herself from being scared. Luno hugged both of them, knowing how they all were feeling. He had been close to death and, while terrifying, he had feared being alone and leaving his sister behind, along with all the things he still had to do.

"It's alright, Ib. We're okay, somehow," Amelia cooed softly, rocking them soothingly. Ib slightly pulled away from the two of them and took out their roses to give them. They took them back, instantly noticing everything off about Ib. Amelia smashed Ib to her, hugging her and promising to never do it again. Luno seconded this, stating he would keep on living so she shouldn't worry about them.

"I-I..It just felt like I was losing something important again," Ib whispered, wiping away the remaining tears on her face. Her face was bright red and puffy from crying, causing Amelia to lighten the mood by gushing over how cute she was. Ib pouted, not seeing how crying made anyone  _cute_.

"Amelia's a masochist~" Luno sang, turning away. Ib laughed at his attempt to lighten the mood, which worked on Amelia as she started denying being one and went off on a random subject. It was then that Ib diffused the previous scenes by inquiring on a simple observation, "Amelia, why are you wearing Luno's shirt?"

Amelia turned bright red, "It's not what you think!" Ib blinked curiously, unsure of what Amelia had thought she had assumed.

"You see, when I fell my shirt was torn up and Luno let me borrow his!" Amelia flailed as she talked, making indications between Luno and herself. Ib just nodded and remarked, "That was very kind of him."

"I always wear undershirts anyway," Luno commented. Ib found it strange that he was only in a pale blue beater, but only because she was used to seeing him in the school uniform.

They discussed finding the way out before deciding that they had no leads so they should go check out the water Ib had found. She led them to the passageway and explained about the water properties. The two were bewildered, but accepted it. They stayed there awhile, trying to figure out just what to do when Amelia jumped up and ran over to the passageway, "I just saw a huge fish!"

"Really?" Luno asked, formulating an idea.

"Yeah, it was bigger than my arm!"

"Do you both know what this means?"

"Uhmm, we won't go hungry?" Amelia guessed, already imagining fishsticks...now all they needed was a fire.

Luno sighed, "No, it means the way out may be right in front of us. None of us have seen a fish till now, meaning that either this is a simple passage route that may lead out, or it's not normally used. I believe that it is the former and will lead us out of here."

"Oh, well, sounds more legit than anything else at the moment, right, Ib?"

The brunette nodded, but wasn't too sure about Luno's hypothesis. However, she really was getting sick of the cavern. They held onto each other as they slid in, the fast current pushing them along. They were harshly sucked into a large box at the end of the passage and then thrown from the aquarius terrain. They landed in a heap on the floor with Luno on the bottom and Amelia on top.

"Whoa, it worked!" Amelia cheered as she got up. She laughed giddily, helping Ib and then Luno to their feet.

"Great, now just where are we-" Luno's question was unanswered as the room's lights started flickering on and off. "What in the?"

Amelia screamed, making the other two jump, as she stared at the corner. The two followed her gaze and held in a breath once they saw the large creature slowly rising onto its multiple legs. A scream died halfway in Ib's throat once it's head snapped towards them, it sniffed the air and let out a large ear-shattering cry. The cry broke the light fixture above them, plummeting the room into darkness.

Ib felt cold air brush past her followed by a grotesque smell. She heard Amelia scream next to her and blindly reached out, her hand coming into contact with nothing. Amelia kept yelling and struggling, Luno trying to help her by fending the thing off. Ib stood still, trying to calm down. She needed to think about this. She was standing right next to Amelia and it even looked at her, so why had it attacked Amelia?

 _Think. Think. Think!_  Ib screamed inwardly, trying to produce a plausible explanation. If she didn't hurry then Amelia might just die, again. Only, maybe for good this time. Crashes sounded further off and Ib shook, trying to see where they were.  _Why does it have to be so dark?_

Ib stopped, feeling like an idiot, before flicking on the flashlight and shining it at the creature. It froze up and stopped stalking Luno and Amelia, opting to scream in Ib's direction and move away from the light. Ib put a finger to her lips and indicated for them to hurry over as she backed up towards the door. She kept the light directed at the creature as they fumbled to open the door and escape after closing the door behind them.

Amelia collapsed onto Ib and Luno, thanking both of them for their help. "I totally wouldn't make good monster food."

Luno gave her a half smile, "Yeah, I'm sure it doesn't like indigestion or just bone."

Amelia laughed before giving a retort. Ib smiled at them, noticing something different in the way they joked around with each other. It was like how her parents would. It was simple and fun, not insulting. Ib blinked at her own speculations. In truth, she'd noticed how Dmitri's insulting seemed to make Amelia uncomfortable and how Luno's was just more playful. It was almost amazing how different it was.

"Neh, Ib, what'cha thinkin' 'bout?" Amelia slurred, setting her head atop Ib's. Ib shook her head, "Nothing, just how you guys banter with one another."

"I-is it weird?" Amelia awkwardly asked and Luno also awaited the answer, never before wondering what it may look like to others.

"No, you guys just seem to be close friends. You don't seem to make the other uncomfortable or upset." Ib explained.

"Ya know, you seem that way with Garry," Amelia pointed out, "When I saw you guys interact, I thought you'd known each other for years. Well, I guess some people just hit it off, huh?"

Luno shrugged and Ib nodded. They turned their attention back to the present matter at hand; finding Garry. They started down the hallway and, much like any adventure, found themselves in countless rooms going through puzzles such as minor cactus mazes to finding dates for artworks and entering them in as passwords for locks. Nothing too eventful happened besides them finding out Luno really likes watching TV (soap operas), but dislikes the cold.

"Are you cold right now?" Amelia asked worriedly. Ib knew that he knew what Amelia was likely thinking and was happy when he shook his head. "The constant movement is keeping me warm. Besides, do you really want your bra on display for all the world to see?"

Amelia turned bright red and smacked his arm. He pretended to be in pain before rolling his eyes.

After an unknown amount of time had passed they arrived at the spiral staircase Ib and Garry had used to leave on their last visit. "When we meet up with Garry, do you think we should leave or continue searching for Kate?"

They all looked at each other quietly, each having their own opinions. Surprisingly, they were all in accordance with the fact that they needed a clear plan of action and the chance to recover, especially Luno and Amelia.

"I think I might retake up morning jogs if I'm going to be doing this much running," Amelia stated aloud as she plopped onto the first step to take a break, "My feet are murdering me!"

Ib sent her a sharp look, which she laughed off sheepishly and amended that she hadn't meant it that way. Ib sat next to Amelia and looked at the two, "Is it alright if I voice one of my displeasures?"

They blinked at the awkwardly formal request and told her to go for it.

"I am really hungry," Ib blushed when she said it, hiding her face in her hands.

Luno and Amelia, mainly the latter, burst out laughing. Amelia clapped her on the back, agreeing that she too was famished and in need of food. "Man, I hope we aren't too late for lunch."

"I'm rather thirsty more so than hungry," Luno remarked, "but, after today, I may actually be crazy enough to try one of your combinations."

Amelia was delighted, "Macaroni-burgers! Ib, you have to try it too! They're really good! You get a hamburger bun and stuff it with mac n' cheese. If daring, you can also add chicken patty, rice, or mashed potatoes!"

Ib gave her a smile and slowly agreed after Luno stated that just plain macaroni in a burger shouldn't be too bad. Now, they just had to convince Garry to eat it too.

"So, should we go look for him or just stay here?" Amelia questioned.

Ib frowned, unsure of what to do. She didn't like the idea of Garry being by himself out in this place, but she also didn't want for them to just miss each other by mere minutes. It was a conundrum that she didn't know how to solve. However, waiting around wasn't going to do anything. If she had to chose, she would look for him.

"We should look for him," Ib stated as she got to her feet. Luno and Amelia followed her example and they started off down another hallway, but they didn't go far before Ib was literally run over. She toppled onto the floor and felt her lungs struggle for oxygen.

"Ib!" Mary tackled Ib for a hug, "I'm so happy you're okay!"

"Oh, are you Mary?" The blonde turned her attention to Amelia and nodded, "Ah, you look exactly like Ib said you would!"

"Really? How did she describe me? Huh?" Mary excitedly asked, going over to Amelia to hear.

"A pretty girl dressed in a green dress, has blonde hair and blue eyes, and young."

Ib stood up and dusted herself off before noticing movement to her left. She looked down the hallway and saw Garry hurrying towards them. She met him halfway and hugged him, taking him off guard. Amelia and Mary giggled at the look on his face while Luno promised to inform him on what happened later.

"Are you okay, Ib?" Garry asked quietly as they walked side-by-side. Ib nodded, "I am now."

They arrived back at the stairs and said their goodbyes to Mary. "We'll be back soon," Ib said after hugging the blonde. "Yup! I think a week will suffice and then we'll be back to kick some ass!" Amelia claimed.

The others thought about this.

"A week would give us time for the concert and some pre-planning." Luno reasoned.

Ib and Garry agreed, promising Mary to meet up with her in a week's time. She smiled at them, feeling tears rise to her eyes as they promised to see her in a week and then left. She wiped them away, hoping that this time things would be different.

" **My, my, Mary, I thought you knew how to behave."**

Mary tensed and remained very still, not saying a word. She really hated him. She wanted to just yell and scream, but he had power here, though none of his influence ever really affected her or made her stop wanting him gone. She also didn't like the other one, the one who goes to play in the outside world.

Mary felt almost sick, what if the other one attacked Ib or the others? Those two may be working together, but that doesn't mean he's in charge of what they do on the outside. That space is far beyond his reach.

" **I guess I need to teach you a lesson again."**

Mary didn't protest when she felt the statues grab her, she could feel them sending her their apologies for what they were doing, or when they started dragging her away. She simply closed her eyes and pretended a week was already over and they had come back.

* * *

All four of them shuffled uncomfortably in the dark, fumbling around for a light switch or door knob. Unfortunately, having four people in a tiny cramped space is never a smart idea, especially when the lights are off.

"Ow, watch my foot!" Amelia exclaimed, pressing herself into the shelves.

A splash was heard as Garry gave an exasperated sigh, "Well, we're probably in a janitor's closet, again."

"No one move, I think I found the door knob," Luno stated as he turned what he thought to be a door knob.

They all toppled onto the floor in an ungraceful manner and scrambled to get up, embarrassed to find other students pointing at them and whispering. Amelia coughed loudly, drawing their attention and announced, "Macaroni-burgers for everyone!" before ushering them all into the cafeteria and then into the food line. They received quite a few stares from others and one of them even turned around to ask them why their uniforms were in disarray.

"Classified information," Luno stated blankly and the girl backed off.

They progressed through the lines, nearly giving the lunch workers heart attacks when they all requested macaroni-burgers, though Amelia's was loaded with chicken patty, a small amount of mashed potatoes, and gravy. They each grabbed a beverage and sat down at their usual table, only Lumi wasn't there waiting for them.

"She must have over time for the concert this week," Amelia deduced before digging into her food. The others joined in, rather surprised that it wasn't all that bad. If anything, Garry just didn't like the texture, but the taste was sufficient. They entertained themselves with commenting on how all of Amelia's combinations aren't so bad, jokes, and about the upcoming concert. They also filled each other in on what had happened to each of them, which sent Garry for a loop at the prospect that Luno and Amelia had almost died. It helped to explain the large hug Ib gave him, having been scared of losing them.

The others were more surprised at what Garry had told them. There were many things that they needed to discuss and plan for, but at the top of it all was the knowledge that they now knew where Kate was. "I'll drink to that!" Amelia cheered, taking a large sip of her milk. The others joined in, looking on the bright side of at least one thing that had happened.

Garry wasn't too sure why, but he had a feeling Ib could feel it too. Both of them had never really spoken to Luno, but after just one trip through the Gallery they all felt closer. Looking at it as a cause and effect, the experience of having to trust one another has pushed them closer together. Garry hadn't even known Luno had followed them in after Amelia until he saw him with the others, but he still felt closer to him.

Garry looked up and spotted Lumi coming towards them, her face curious but also disbelieving. She grabbed her lunch and plopped down, asking how they were. They each pretended to be nonchalant about it, shrugging or going on about a class or two to make it seem like they weren't trying to hide something.

"Okay, I'm going to address the elephant under the table," Lumi stated, causing Amelia to laugh at the misspoken phrase, to which Luno and Lumi stated that they had always thought the elephant was under the table. "Why wouldn't it be under the table?"

The awkward question was successfully avoided as Amelia and Garry kept Lumi entranced by her incorrect wording before Ib stated a simple explanation at the very end of lunch, "Elephants don't fit under tables." After, they all got up and left. Lumi went off to another class, claiming she was already a few minutes late, which left the four all by themselves again.

They walked to their classes together, each splitting up when needed to until only Ib and Garry were left. They talked quietly with one another about earlier topics, such as how Amelia asked everyone on what types of things they liked to do. Apparently they all liked eating so they agreed to meet up tomorrow afternoon to try the cafe that was on campus. Ib and Garry had never been there, Amelia wanted to have hot cider, and Luno was just being dragged along because he had the same lunch and because they were coming out with a new latte.

"Are you doing anything this weekend?" Garry asked.

Ib nodded, "Some classmates invited me to watch a series with them on Saturday. I've nothing planned for Sunday."

"Well, why don't we hang out then? There's supposed to be this festival in town and it sounds pretty interesting," Garry asked before adding, "We can make it a group thing too."

Ib thought about it, "Alright."

"Really?"

"Yes," Ib stated as she turned away to go into her classroom, "I'll see you at dinner?"

"Yeah, see you then."

Once the door was closed Garry blushed, he felt like he'd been asking her out on a date rather than as friends, but...maybe that's what he wanted? He tried not to think about it too deeply as he headed to his own class.

* * *

Garry and Ib met up in the hallway and headed towards the cafeteria, grouping with Amelia and Luno by coincidence since Luno had been let out early for once. Amelia tried to convince them to try another combination, successfully roping Luno and Garry into it while Ib simply stated she liked the school's pasta just fine the way it was. They went through the whole food process and sat down at the table, noting that Lumi was busy with more concert stuff and wouldn't be joining them.

Gillian greeted them as they sat down, expecting some answers to all the things she'd been hearing. Soaru arrived in the middle of Gillian squealing and nearly just left then, but Ib had already spotted him and was waving politely at him. He sat down next to Luno and then noticed something more off than the fact that he wasn't wearing his uniform top, "Your hair is uneven. How did that happen?"

Luno froze as everyone closely examined his hair, realizing that Soaru was correct. His hair was horribly uneven. He shared a look with Amelia, Ib, and Garry before shrugging. "Well, I'm not shabby with a pair of scissors so I can cut your hair, if you want." Amelia offered, Luno sighed again until Garry brought up that he also could cut hair and would be there to supervise. Luno settled on that, explaining to Amelia that just last week she cut herself with a refrigerator magnet and the idea of giving her scissors made him nervous.

Her retort: "It was a sharp magnet!"

"Obviously sharper than you are," Dmitri stated as he plopped into an available chair and started eating.

Ib watched Amelia furrow her brow, "Like anyone asked for your opinion."

"Because some people just like lying to themselves, Zhirny."

"I hope you get hit by a flying shovel!" Amelia exclaimed.

"Go fall in a hole," Dmitri stated, but suddenly felt very cold. He-along with everyone-looked to find the source, which just so happened to be from Ib. Damn, he never thought she could be scary, "Uhmm, I mean a relatively small one that causes little self harm?"

Ib returned to eating, satisfied with the situation. Amelia gushed over how adorable Ib was for standing up for her. "With a look like that you could over power Luno!"

Ib stuck to eating her pasta. She hadn't meant to glare at anyone; the phrase just bothered her now as Amelia and Luno really had fallen in a large hole and just about died. The memory was enough to make anxiety pool into her stomach and her eyes overflow with hot tears. Ib would never wish such a thing on anyone, so why do people tell others to go fall in holes? Don't they realize how life threatening it can be? Yeah, Ib felt somewhat melodramatic but the whole incident was still relatively fresh in her mind.

Amelia, Garry, and Luno looked rather worriedly at Ib, which provoked Amelia to use the power of comic relief to ask Garry a very personal question, "Prove to me your hair isn't dyed!"

Soaru nearly choked on his hotdog (then discarded the thing altogether)while Gillian giggled. Luno gave a tiny amused smile, Dmitri rolled his eyes, and Ib was curious on how one would prove such a thing.

They teased him for a few minutes before Ib finally asked, "How do you prove that?"

Luno covered Ib's ears (Hey, he was doing her a favor) and promised to tell her when she was older, like eighty-seven. Garry hid his face in his hands, bright red from the whole thing. The only reason he wasn't too upset was because he knew Amelia was just trying to distract Ib, but did she really need to pick on his hair colour?

After finishing dinner, Amelia, Luno, and Garry left to go cut the blonde's hair. Ib stayed behind to finish and possibly find her one art teacher to ask about a project.

"Hey, Ib, what's up with everyone today, da?" Dmitri asked, "I've been hearing some weird rumors about you guys falling out of a closet, but that can't be true."

"Really? I heard it too," Gillian voiced and Soaru nodded, saying something about the student council being complained to by the janitor for someone stepping in some bucket and spilling it.

Ib's reply was both cunning and slick, followed up by a small bite of pasta, "It happened."

The other three stopped talking as they didn't know if she was kidding or not. Apparently, she wasn't.

"What were you all doing in the janitor's closet?" Soaru asked, hoping there would be a plausible excuse.

Ib wasn't good at lying, but she didn't know how to get out of this, "It's a secret."

Before they could ask any more questions she stood up, exchanged departing phrases, and zoomed off to throw out her trash and find her teacher. She felt bad for doing something like that, but she couldn't just tell them about the Gallery and the like. Amelia and Luno were dragged into it so they were now a part of it, but the others shouldn't have to know or even worry about it.

Ib stepped into her second period class and glanced around for her teacher, finding her sitting at her desk grading projects. Ib walked over and waited to be acknowledged, which only took until the end of the stack, "Yes, Ib?"

Just as Ib was going to respond another teacher walked through the door. Ib's teacher diverted her attention, "Mr. Raizel, if you would please give me a moment."

"I can wait, if needed," Ib offered, to which the teacher nodded gratefully.

"Are the sets finished?" Mr. Raizel inquired blankly.

As they talked Ib took the chance to study Mr. Raizel. He was quite tall, even taller than Garry, and had slightly narrow shaped blue eyes which were a sharp contrast to his dark slick-backed hair. He stood with poise and his voice was rich and deep. Ib concluded that he nearly carried the same air as Lumi and because he was speaking about sets, he probably was from the theatre department.

Once their conversation ended, Ib spoke with her teacher and then left. She had just made it inside the dorm when Amelia dragged her upstairs to show off Luno's new hairstyle. It came to about the end of his neck and was parted on the left, a stubborn strand hanging in his face to complete it.

"I nearly look like Neah," and yes, Luno was pouting.

"No, his is more spiky and bed-head like!" Amelia assured.

"I like it. There's more of a resemblance to Lumi and your face looks edged." Garry supplied.

"Masculine." Ib stated, nodding her head. She liked it both long and short, but short seemed to be better for his face shape...maybe that's why Lumi's kept hers short?

"Gee, thanks," Luno responded sarcastically. Ib frowned, "I don't see the problem. Whether long or short you are still you."

"Awe, check out my baby being corny and working it!" Amelia giggled, snuggling Ib. Ib didn't know what this  _corny_ thing was, but she had a feeling it was some sort of pun.

Luno gave a crooked half-smile, "At least now Amelia has to look up new jokes about my hair."

Amelia, just realizing all her research was for not, dramatically dropped to the floor and yelled, "No!"

Luno now smirked, "Well, I've been optimistic at least once today, I can now check that off my to-do list."

Amelia laughed, sitting cross-legged on the floor. Ib and Garry sat next to each other on the bed while Luno stayed in the desk chair, content with checking his hair in the mirror. "Damn, I hope it doesn't look weird." he mumbled, piquing their interest.

"What doesn't look weird?" Garry asked.

Luno paused, debating if he should tell them. "You can't tell anyone else this, but I wear glasses. I swapped to contacts so I only wear them during shows and concerts so I can see from a distance."

"Put them on! Put them on!" Amelia cheered, refusing to budge unless he complied. He eventually gave up and put on the square black glasses and was surprised to hear Amelia squeal and shake his shoulders, "You look so adorable!"

"Don't you wear contacts?" Luno asked, trying to change the topic, "I want to see you in your glasses also, since we're sharing."

Amelia backed away, "Well, I don't even know where they are and-"

"Here they are," Ib gave the case to Amelia, who pretended to be heartbroken at the unexpected betrayal. She eventually put them on after much provoking. While Luno's were subtle, Amelia's were loud and bright green. However, they fit her face well enough and looked rather cute, in their own opinions.

"See, they're hideous!" Amelia stated, "Besides, it's harder to look through the camera with them on."

"So that's the sole purpose behind contacts then, for photography?" Luno deduced.

Amelia nodded, "Yup! I get really bad glare with my glasses on and then my eyes hurt from straining them. I only wear them at home when I don't need to put in contacts or when they start to agitate me."

"They look nice on you," Luno complemented.

"I think they're cute, on both of you." Ib voiced, looking back and forth between them.

Amelia's face lit up, "You really think so?"

Ib nodded, practically used to Amelia hugging her now. She even hugged back, which shocked Amelia, but melted away as she deemed it cute. "I love cute things, which is why I love all of you, even seaweed head over there!"

Garry just sighed at the nickname, but shared a look with Luno as they shrugged in a sorta what-can-you-do? gesture. They finalized their plans for lunch the following day and told one another they would see them at breakfast before splitting up. Just as Ib was leaving Amelia called out to her, "Uhm, Ib, I forgot to give Luno back his shirt. I want to wash it and give it back, but I hate going to the basement by myself, could you go with me?"

Amelia was highly embarrassed and Ib found it...cute? "Sure, I don't mind."

Amelia grabbed her laundry while Ib decided just to get hers done while at it, and walked down the steps to the basement. The room was long and wide, packed back to back walls of washers and dryers. They chose a station close to the stairs and set about the process of washing soiled clothes using technology. Now, they waited for it to be over so they could throw the clothes in the dryer.

"Say, Ib, what do you think about Garry?" Amelia asked suddenly.

"He's very tall," Ib stated, causing Amelia to deadpan.

"No, what I meant is do you like him?"

"Yes, I like all of you."

"No, I mean like how your mom and dad like each other. You know, like when he walks into the room you can't help but be happy or you feel funny here," Amelia pointed to her chest.

Ib thought about it. She was always content whenever the table spoke with her and accepted her, she liked all of them. Garry though, sometimes she felt different, such as if he were to stop sitting with them she would be highly upset. She also liked it when Amelia hugged her, but when she hugged Garry she was overjoyed and she always wanted to walk to class with him if he wasn't in a hurry. She expressed this to Amelia and the girl sighed, leaning against the washer.

"I guess Luno was right, you both are kinda dense."

Ib wanted to switch topics as she started feeling embarrassed, "What about you?"

"About Garry? I think he's interesting and helpful, he really cares and he's genuine. He's also a seaweed head."

"Do you like anyone?" Ib asked, trying to keep up the conversation.

Amelia blushed and leaned in closer, "Kinda, but he'll probably never like me back."

Ib felt her eyes widen. Amelia was highly likable, so at least there was a high possibility of friendship before the next leap. When she told Amelia this she nervously laughed, "We kinda already are, but he's sorta out of my reach. Don't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you, not even Garry, ok?"

Ib promised.

"I sorta have this issue with my family and my father doesn't really like the whole idea of me being a photographer. The only reason I'm allowed to attend is because of how prestigious it is and I've never had really awesome grades. So, I get a bit upset when people flat out insult my intelligence because-" Amelia started to choke up and Ib decided she would have to instigate the hug and offer condolences, because she knew.

"It's alright; I think I understand a little bit." Ib stated.

"How?" Amelia asked, not to be mean but because she wanted to make sure she wasn't just hearing pretty words.

"I don't like my eyes. People stare at them and try to avoid me unless forced to interact with me. It made me feel weird, because I didn't know what was wrong with me. I wanted to become like everyone else so I wouldn't have to be alone, but I couldn't. People often look at me and guess that I wear colour contacts or they avoid looking me in the eye, so I don't like meeting many people because I have to watch their reactions."

Ib felt that this was all getting too touchy-feely, but decided that letting someone else know about her own insecurities wasn't bad. In fact, she felt rather relieved to get it off her chest. She really appreciated all her current friends, like Amelia and Garry, who weren't put off by her eye colour and accepted her for her.

"Awe, I feel appreciated for some reason!" Amelia replied, "Thanks, Ib, for not just saying nice words to me. I think I found someone who kinda gets it."

They continued light-heartedly chattering until all the laundry was done, Luno's shirt folded neatly on top. They walked up the stairs and parted ways, both feeling more relaxed and content than they had previously. They exchanged phrases and went to their own rooms.

Ib changed and crawled into bed, ready to fall asleep. She dozed for sometime until waking up at around three in the morning. Ib tried to roll over and go back to sleep, but something felt  _off_. She sat up and slowly swept the room with her eyes, not seeing anything out of place. Ib laid back down to try and go back to sleep when a loud thud from next door made her jump. Tiredly, she pulled a pillow over her head to block out the noise, but it didn't work. The racket started to come in regular rhythms, exasperating the brunette who was trying to sleep.

She stood up and went next door and knocked. From past experiences, no one was going to answer and then the noises would mysteriously stop sometime after. The noises continued for awhile and Ib turned to walk away, but as she neared her own door she heard the other slowly open.

Now, Ib didn't lack much common sense and she had seen enough horror movies to know where this was going, but she wanted to know what was making all the racket almost every single night. She approached the door and slowly opened it up wider while peering inside.

The room was clean, but barren, which made it obvious that no one had lived in the room for quite some time. Ib walked further inside, glancing around for anything that could make the loud noises she'd heard. She looked under the bed closest to the wall and gave pause before dragging out a large frame. Inside the canvas was a nearly finished piece that depicted a girl no older than herself stuck inside a small cage with two locks, one of which wasn't finished.

There was something horribly strange about this painting, something that she would have to have the others check out with her just to make sure it wasn't her nerves. Ib placed the painting back under the bed and went back to her own room to fall asleep. The girl's eyes stared at her from the cage inside her own dreamscape until sleep finally soothed her, pulling her away from reality's cruel games.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot of shit goes down.

> "Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds you that you have one"
> 
> ―Stella Adler

Slipping, falling, crashing. Reverberating promises of tryst, swept up into one. Ocher hearts, dipped in sin cascade through the muddy pool, illuminating the abysmal domain with elongated waves that slosh against the cavern walls endlessly. It was hovering above the pool, drifting softly like smoke, a spectator, luminescent in self. Slowly lingering in repose of a waking state, there but not. From above, towering over abysmal oceans casting shadows around the corona.

Whispers, soft and cold descend into the pool, murmuring and gurgling from choking. Eyes, ancient and blind, glower from the depths, knowing all, telling nothing, but portraying something. Rising to the surface, straying and wafting, only to hit the glass. Disconnected, withdrawn, dying...

Gone.

* * *

Ib awoke with a lurch, sitting straight up as she breathed hard. She tried to calm down as images flashed behind her eyelids, broadcasting the clear image of the creature from the Gallery that had attacked them. She had barely been able to fall asleep due to all the events that had happened, and her dreams were only a reflection. Within them she had been unable to do anything but be idle or, in some cases, run only to feel as if it were through thick syrup that she would never be able to get out of. There were always figures, laughing, crying, screaming, and reaching for her. To top it off, right at the end she witnessed that creature tear apart Amelia's, Luno's, and Garry's respective roses.

Her heart thundered in her chest for some time as she realized she was safe in her room, no longer in the Gallery. It was all a dream, nothing more. Feeling more composed and alert, Ib got up and set about getting ready for the day. The showcase was Friday, a mere two days away. Which would make it a week since she'd arrived at St. Rose...it was almost unbelievable that today was only the fifth day...So much can happen in such little time.

She stepped out of her room to get in line for the showers, not paying much attention as the line moved along. Ib was ready to just meet Garry and the others for breakfast and have a relatively normal day, or at least as normal as she could achieve. However, she knew that when lunch came around the main conversation was going to be about the Gallery and the course of action they should take.

Strategies blossomed inside her head as she quickly showered, thinking each through, but it was highly difficult as there were many loose ends and questions left answered. Besides, she also needed to have them look at the half finished painting she had found last night.

After grabbing her school bag, Ib was ready to head out. She walked through the hallway and glanced at the stairs, nearly expecting Amelia to suddenly appear and hug her, but the hyper girl was nowhere to be seen.

'Maybe I should go get her?' Ib contemplated this. Though they had known each other only a few days, Amelia felt like...a best friend? Ib internally nodded at this conclusion, deciding that it felt plausible. Besides, she wanted to make sure Amelia was alright since even Ib had had a tough night.

In a matter of mere moments, Ib knocked on Amelia's door, listening to the shuffling from within before the door was thrown open. Amelia, only half wearing her uniform, smiled and hugged Ib, "Good morning, Ib! I can't believe you're here!"

Ib was dragged into the room and took a seat at the desk, listening to Amelia go on about something while getting ready. After a few minutes of idle chatter Amelia was finished and grabbed a plastic shop-like bag from her desk.

"Alrighty, breakfast time! Let's go!" Amelia joyfully announced, striking a pose. Ib just passed her to the door, not batting an eye at the display. Amelia followed after her.

"Hey, you look really tired. Were you not able to sleep either?" Amelia asked after a moment of silence. Ib slowly nodded, "Nightmares."

"Ah, I know what you mean, but it's all okay 'cause we'll be prepared next time and we now know its weakness, right?"

Ib nodded, prompting Amelia to continue on, but Ib could tell that she too was a bit scared, more so than she was willing to let her see.

"Thank you," Ib suddenly stated. She could feel herself become embarrassed over the whole thing as Amelia looked at her strangely.

"For what?"

"...For being here and for assuring me." Ib elaborated, and wasn't too surprised when Amelia hugged her again, squealing something about her being cute.

"You're welcome, but it's not something you need to thank me for. I want to do it and it's also selfish, 'cause I'm also trying to convince myself, but I'm sure we'll all be okay because we have one another to help us out. I'm positive that Garry and Luno would agree! It's scarier to deal with things on your own, so don't ever hesitate to tell one of us if you're overwhelmed or afraid! We're friends, and friends help each other. Now, it's food time 'cause that totally sounded less cheesy in my head, meaning that I need fuel." Amelia rambled, feeling embarrassed herself for saying something so...sappy, but she shrugged it off. It was for Ib. Enough said.

They arrived at their table and greeted Garry, Luno, and Soaru whom were already situated. Before Ib could say anything Amelia dragged her away towards the foodline in a hurry. Once Amelia let go Ib scrutinized her, taking in her slightly red face and fidgeting.

"Amelia, are you nervous about something?" Amelia looked at the brunette and opened her mouth before closing it and gripped the thin handles of the plastic bag tighter, "Y-Yeah, I thought only Garry, Luno, and us were going to be at the table so I could give Luno his shirt back."

"What's wrong with giving it back with Soaru there?" Ib questioned, not understanding.

Amelia fidgeted and leaned in to whisper to avoid being overheard, "Because no one else knows that I was wearing his shirt yesterday outside of us and it's just really embarrassing."

Ib just nodded, understanding only a bit more than she previously had. However, she decided to voice her own thoughts, "I don't understand why it's strange to you, but if you wait there's a higher chance of something going wrong rather than doing it now in front of only Soaru."

It took until they were half way through the line for Amelia to finally reply, "Yeah, it makes sense. Soaru wouldn't be one to say anything about it, and even if he did I could try to make something up."

"Try to make what up?" Asked a voice behind them, which caused Ib to blink as she turned her head to look at the newcomer, while Amelia smiled brightly and started chattering away.

"Oh, oh, Liam this Ib. Ib, this is Liam, he's the one who first introduced me to Lumi and Luno." Amelia looked between her bespectacled friend and Ib in pure excitement.

Red met ocher as they greeted one another politely. The young man was taller than Amelia, maybe even more so than Garry, and his most distinguishing feature was a small mole under his left eye. Ib noticed that he kept taking off his glasses to clean them as they conversed, which was almost distracting, but didn't want to point it out.

"So, don't you normally have classes by now?" Amelia asked excitedly. She then looked at Ib, "He's majoring in jewelry and those classes start earlier due to all the time that goes into detail and crafting."

"Yes, my classes usually start earlier but today the teacher has decided to start later due to the concert. A good portion of the students are involved with helping to set up, making props, or are a part of the show."

"Oh, that's cool. You can finally eat with us for once!" Amelia cheered, hugging him. "Oh, I bet Luno will be happy too! You two normally only see each other during your sixth period class, and then you go off for a seventh class."

"Yeah, but I actually have to leave in fifteen minutes."

Amelia pouted. Ib pointedly looked at Liam to diffuse the wheat-haired girl's irritation, which he nodded at in understanding. "Do you two know that there's going to be a festival in town this weekend? The school has graciously decided to help out and take over a few stalls and is asking that students help out and attend."

Ib nodded, "Garry told me about it. He asked me to go."

Amelia perked up at this and grabbed Ib's shoulders, "What, really?"

"Yes, he added that it was going to be a group outing." Ib tacked on, not understanding why Amelia looked almost disappointed, but then mischievous. "Of course! We'll discuss this later and let Garry know we're going. I'll even do some research so we can plan it out."

Ib nodded, to which Liam gave her a surprised look. He then looked between the two girls as they idly made conversation and inwardly sighed as he realized admittedly that Ib was probably innocent and didn't fully understand Amelia's double meanings, which was either for the better or for the worst. However, he could clearly see that they were compatible friends as they strengthened each other because they were different, yet alike...somehow.

Liam trailed them back to the table where the guys were still seated. Amelia placed down her tray and held out the plastic bag in front of Luno's face, her own face heating up as she did. "T-Thank you for letting me borrow your shirt the other day!"

Luno nodded, his own face betraying nothing to those who didn't know him well enough, but Liam and Soaru could tell that he was also affected...maybe even blushing? Both made eye contact, remembering the events leading up to why she even had to borrow his shirt. Both averted their eyes, remembering it clearly. The trepidation, the confessions, and the general sense of peace of having the other next to them, of knowing that they weren't alone. There was also the promise that they had made.

"Thanks, it wasn't a problem. I'd do it again." Luno rambled, moving to take the bag. His hand touched Amelia's and for a moment they both shared a secret sort of smile before Amelia receded back into her seat. Luno put the bag on the floor next to him and continued eating.

Ib and Garry shared their own look after that. It wasn't as intense, but almost just as meaningful. It was one of understanding, of knowledge, and yet simple in nature. The look itself was comforting as they both were healing from the events of yesterday, a simple look to check the other for any fear or wavering.

Soaru looked between all of them, his own confusion reflected back by Liam. The two didn't know what to make of the situation or if there was anything to make at all. For all they know, something had happened and Luno had valiantly offered Amelia his shirt. However, Soaru knew about the rumours from yesterday and Ib had confirmed that the four of them had been in a closet...which was weird by itself, but the main question was why. If it was simply just a mishap then he could let it go, but he could tell something was different in the dynamic of their relationship. He almost felt...distant to them, a stark contrast to two days ago.

The biggest offenders were that Amelia wasn't jumping all over Garry for sitting close to Ib, her lack of telling people to fall in holes, Ib glaring at Dmitri the other day and tearing up, Luno's reactions to Amelia giving him the bag, and Luno's general concern towards Garry and Ib, which had been miniscule two days prior. Let's also not forget the constant glances that appeared to be some form of secret language between the four of them.

Soaru couldn't wrap his head around it. How could those four have gotten so close in only a day? Before he could try to dissect it he felt the need to glance behind him. He almost wished he hadn't because he could clearly see that Gillian and Dmitri had heard and seen the exchange. He got to his feet and greeted them, trying to make it seem like they had just arrived.

"Dmitri, Gillian, I have something to show you guys in the hallway. The student council is taking a poll about the food and I want to evaluate you guys." He lamely explained as he ushered them out of the cafeteria, throwing a goodbye behind him.

"Well, that was really weird." Amelia commented, causing Liam to sweatdrop, which happened again after Ib agreed and Garry questioned why Soaru hadn't told them about the poll. Round three came with a vengeance as they started to debate on the reasons. He looked over at Luno, expecting for him to have a clue, but nearly smashed his head on the table when he remarked, "I don't like their mushrooms."

Liam, exasperated, sighed and stood up. "I'm going to class."

"Hold up, I'll go with you." Luno stated as he also got to his feet.

"Hey, don't forget that we're eating at the cafe today!" Amelia reminded the blond, who nodded in her direction and told them goodbye before walking away with Liam. The chestnut haired boy wanted to question his blond friend, but was conflicted about if he should. They had been friends for a long time, but there were still things that one should leave alone. Was this one of those things?

"You cut your hair?" Liam asked instead, now noticing that the usual long blond locks weren't present.

Luno nodded, resisting the urge to run his hand through his hair. He wasn't too upset about it anymore, having decided that it was a testament to his promises with Ib and Amelia, but it still felt strange to have his hair short.

"Why did you do that? Something happened." Liam deduced, which didn't surprise Luno in the slightest. They had been friends long enough to tell when something had happened.

"It just happened."

"Did it happen at the same time you gave Amelia your shirt?"

Luno thought it over, "I don't believe so. It probably happened afterwards."

"You're not sure?"

"No, Soaru had to point it was uneven yesterday."

"Oh," was his slick response as he mauled it all over. Luno wasn't giving him much to go off of, but he deduced that something big had to of happened.

"Were Ib and Garry involved?" Luno stopped and turned to face him, his brows furthered in irritation.

"What is this; the Inquisition?"

"Is there a reason for it to be?" Liam asked as he folded his arms. Luno's eyes narrowed at his question, "No, nothing I can think of that would result in this."

"Well, then would you like to explain your recent behavior? There's something up between you all, and Garry and Ib seem to be at the core of it." Liam stated. He had only met Ib today and Garry a few days ago, but he could tell that something was off about them.

"It's none of your business." Luno responded coldly, not wanting to talk about it. However, Liam was his friend and he wasn't going to let this go unless he was given an answer. So, Luno dropped something that would calm him down, if only a bit, "I owe Amelia a favour and she pushed me into helping them out since they're new."

Liam didn't believe it for a second, but decided to accept the answer for the moment. He could be concerned all he wanted, but Luno wasn't ready to budge. He sighed inwardly; this was going to be a hectic weekend.

* * *

Ib walked out of her third period class while still conversing with Lucy and Rose about their plans for Saturday. She spotted Garry waiting for her and bid the two girls goodbye before heading over. The two giggled as they walked away, reminding her about Saturday. Ib nodded at them before turning her full attention to Garry.

They walked towards the cafeteria where they were to wait for Amelia and Luno as Ib and Garry didn't know how to reach the cafe. They idly chattered about their classes, Garry laughing when Ib told him that someone had called her a fuzzy-fuzz ball, and then about books. When Luno and Amelia finally spotted them they were so engrossed in debating about a character's drive that they didn't notice them until Luno and Amelia were right in front of them.

"Oh, sorry," Garry awkwardly said, rubbing the back of his head.

Amelia waved him off in favor of dragging them off towards the cafe, explaining that it was student friendly in prices before listing off nearly the whole menu. Luno added things that she forgot and informed them that half of the menu was based on free lunches for students who had financial aid. However, there was a limit to the amount of meals one could have at the cafe due to needing to make a profit.

"The cafe offers food that the cafeteria does not, supplies the school with funds while also paying the students and other workers who run it, and it's popular with music and fashion department sometimes hold shows there for auctions or charity events sponsored by the cafe." Luno informed the two, letting it all sink in before adding that the cafe was only half owned by the school as a generous business investment from a private investor who donated whatever the cafe made to the school, along with a hearty check every other year.

Ib wasn't sure what she was suspecting from this big whig cafe, but it certainly wasn't  _this_. The building seemed to be in excellent condition with all windows accounted for and spotless. It was made of dark wood and brick with cream trim. The interior was almost homely, yet reminiscent of a coffee shop with a brown, white, and red colour scheme. However, there were other colours that popped up to make up for it. The light filtering through the windows projected a golden glow onto the marble tables, creating an illusion of a late afternoon.

There was just something about the place that put Ib as ease, and it didn't appear she was the only one who thought so. Garry seemed just as awed, only more expressive about it than Ib, as he took the cafe in.

"This place...I wasn't expecting for something like this to be here," Garry started only to trail off as he was still captivated by the place.

Amelia laughed at his expression, which seemed mellower than usual. Luno's expression also softened into one of content. Ib nodded to herself; the cafe's atmosphere was to blame as it just had a calming aura.

They picked a booth near the corner window, a safe distance from the other customers so as not to be overheard, and then moseyed up to the counter to order. Ib blinked at the cashier; recognizing her from one of her classes. If she recalled, the girl's name was Elsa, and once spilled water on Ib's drawing. Whether it was an accident or not is still debatable, but Ib was content with just letting it go.

Elsa looked none too pleased to see Ib or Amelia, instead locking her gaze with Garry when she asked, "What can I get you?"

Garry and Ib looked up at the menu board, thinking it over as the other two ordered right away. "Have you ever heard of half of these?" Garry asked Ib, glancing down at her. His expression was puzzled as most of the menu carried things that he hadn't had before, or that he couldn't remember having, but same difference.

"Yes, which ones haven't you heard of?" Ib replied. She looked at where Garry was pointing on the menu before going through it with him, explaining what was on it and sometimes adding her own opinion.

"Excuse me, but there's a line," Elsa interrupted, though they were really the only two in line, before smiling over at Garry, "If you have any questions about the menu feel free to ask me."

Garry's brow furrowed, "No thank you, I know what I want to order."

He listed it off and handed Elsa his I.D. She swiped the barcode and handed it back, half listening to Ib's order. After that they headed back to the table to wait for their food to be cooked. They slid in next to each other and Amelia nearly growled, sending metaphorical daggers at Elsa.

"That girl is really rude! Did you see the way she brushed Ib off?" Amelia seethed, feeling the urge to smack something.

"She did the same to you," Luno pointed out, to which Amelia shrugged.

"I once tripped her during our dance class by accident."

"I'm not too surprised by that," Luno stated as he took a sip of his latte. He paused after only a baby-sip, his face morphing in discontent. "This isn't made properly. What are they doing back there, letting apes run the blender? I'm going to demand another one."

Amelia dragged him down just as he stood up, "No! That's her plan of action. She's known throughout the school for getting orders wrong on purpose to talk to cute guys."

Luno blinked slowly, "What?"

"Amelia just implied you're cute." Ib summarized.

"Ib!"

"What?"

At this point in time Garry and Luno were laughing, the latter sitting back down, while Amelia was rivaling a tomato as she stared at Ib in betrayal, "I thought what we had was special, Ib! How could you throw me under the bus like that?"

"You're still clutching his arm," Ib stated with a gesture towards the offending limbs. Really, Ib only acted this way around her father and mother...'It's been a long time since I could freely talk like this.' She gave a small hidden smile, blaming the cafe for her sense of relaxation while enjoying it as Amelia started to sputter and nearly threw herself against the window to increase the distance between herself and Luno.

"Oh, so you don't think I'm cute anymore?" Luno teased, the smirk on his face growing as Amelia groaned and smashed her forehead into the table. She briefly glanced up to seek sympathy from Garry.

"Gar-gar, they're being mean to me." Garry sweatdropped at the nickname, but then rolled his eyes at her whining.

"You deserve it."

Before Amelia could retort, and oh did she have a good one, their orders were called. They declared a truce and headed for the counter. Luno paused by the counter and handed Elsa his latte, "More whip cream and make sure to actually roast the beans this time, thank you."

Amelia failed to keep in a snort at Elsa's gawking face, having to turn around and lean onto Ib's left clavicle to stifle some of the noise. Ib looked up, making eye contact with the cashier. She glanced quickly away, knowing that Luno's words had already insulted her and that Amelia laughing about it must be embarrassing. However, a tiny part of her had enjoyed it...but only because Elsa had been highly rude to her for no apparent reason. If anything, Ib should be the one angry at her for the whole water fiasco a few days ago.

They sat at the table and began eating, an unprecedented silence befalling them. Ib could feel herself slowing down as she knew what they would have to discuss here and now. There was no running from it, especially with the promise she made to Marry...and the silent one to Kate. She wasn't going to sit idly by while Kate was in trouble and Mary was crying for help. Sure, the danger and thought of anyone dying terrified her, but the thought of just abandoning the two made her stomach twist into complex knots. No, there was no way she could do that.

"Okay guys, let's get this over with. We have one week until D-day and we need a plan of action," Amelia spoke up, breaking the tense silence.

Ib nodded in agreement as she placed her fork down. Next to her, Garry slowly nodded, "Just where do we begin? How do we prepare for something like  _this_?"

Luno glanced at all of them, "The beginning. Ib, Garry, knowledge is power and you two seem to be the biggest enigmas. From what Mary told you, Garry, this is not your first time in the Gallery and it's safe to assume that it isn't Ib's either."

Garry and Ib nodded at this, knowing that the Gallery felt too nostalgic to just be a coincidence.

Luno continued, "We can't have any secrets between us concerning this. I want to know what you know or even why you don't know. Try to start at the beginning."

Garry gulped, unsure if he was ready for this. He had only admitted this to Mary and those that called themselves his family, but this was a dire situation and if he was somehow connected to it then he didn't have the right to hold back.

"I don't remember much. I don't even remember how old I used to be. I was in a car accident and it was only two years ago I awoke from a coma. I only remembered my name and this strange feeling that I was forgetting something important. I didn't know what to do until I saw a flyer for this academy, and I just knew that I had to come here."

Amelia's face was grim at this, while Luno remained stoic, and Ib felt strange. Garry's story reminding her of her own. It had been years ago, but the feeling of loss and disappointment still lingered. She couldn't remember where she had been going, only that she was meeting someone important to her.

"Wait, didn't Marry say something about the Gallery becoming unstable a couple years ago?" Amelia asked, lowering her voice and leaning in. Her brows were furrowed in concentration as she tried to put the pieces together.

"Let's hear Ib's side before we start trying to draw parallels," Luno stated as he looked to Ib.

"It's rather strange. When I was nine I remember going somewhere with my parents and meeting someone, but I can't remember where it was or who I met. We had planned to meet somewhere, but then I only remember this feeling of loss and disappointment. I-I..." Ib gave pause, trying to think back as the lingering emotions tried to stop her, pushing her away with harsh warnings. "I only remember one thing."

Garry put his hand on her shoulder as she hid her face in her hands, soothingly asking her what it was.

"Fear. I was scared, but I don't remember why." A searing pain gripped at her heart, making it hard to breathe. The heat encircled her eyes, desperately searching a way out through her aqueducts, but Garry had enveloped her in a reassuring hug.

"Amelia," Luno said as he looked over towards his companion who desperately wanted to say something.

"Okay, so Mary mentioned that it was a couple years ago that the Gallery became unstable, which is also the same time that Garry came out of a coma. Coincidence much? What if the person Ib was meeting was Garry? Think about it, you two feel nostalgic in the Gallery and towards one another. If we can piece together what happened the day Garry was hit by that car then we might have a clue as to what happened to the Gallery for it to become unbalanced."

The other three occupants blinked at this, mainly because it seemed to make sense and this is Amelia...

"It would make sense, but if they were out of the Gallery then how could those events have triggered anything?" Luno put in.

They sat in silence for a moment before Garry softly conceded, "Vessel."

"Vessel? i remember you mentioning it yesterday briefly, but what does it have to do with anything?"

Garry unwound Ib from his arms, unknowingly keeping one of his fidgeting hands in hers for comfort as his other hand latched onto the table. His eyes narrowed slightly as he leaned in, as if afraid that Elsa or the very few other customers were trying to listen in, "Mary said that vessels are meant for  _It._  I don't know what this being is, but if we die in the Gallery then our life energy is transferred to  _It_. Kate was taken because she had been there before."

"It's starting to make more sense," Luno mused. "This Gallery, if Mary is telling the truth, has existed here for an unknown amount of time...since this  _it_  was born.  _It_  is the core and is being sustained somehow, possibly through the vitality of all those who dare enter. Let's create a hypothesis; The Gallery is attempting to trap visitors in order for them to sustain  _it_."

"But Mary said that this  _it_  isn't bad!" Amelia chimed in, nervously looking between them all. "If that's true, then maybe it's that guy you mentioned, the cloaked one."

Garry nodded, "Mary did say that he didn't originally belong and was the one who took Kate so that  _it_ wouldn't...wither or die, something along those lines."

They all paused, stumped at what to say next. There were too many questions and not enough answers. Ib debated on saying anything. Garry had relayed just about the whole conversation he had with Mary, and then some, and one thing kept nagging at her. However, she wasn't sure if it would be useful to them...but Luno did say not to keep anything quiet.

"From speculation, this cloaked man seems adamant on making sure that  _it_  doesn't wake up, which may be why he took Kate in order to postpone the awakening, but why?"

"Mary, nor does anyone else, know what will happen after  _it_ awakens. Perhaps this figure fears for their existence?" Luno supplied, unsure of it himself. His words felt erroneous to him, and he was relieved to see that he wasn't the only one that felt this way.

"I don't think that's the whole truth," Amelia stated before moving closer to Luno while leaning further into their square, "but Mary implied that Kate wasn't alone when she went...which means that whoever else was with her is probably in danger of being taken like Kate."

"Ah," Luno piqued up, not bothering to move away from Amelia, "That's another thing. How do we know that no one else has been a victim? Just about everyone not involved has forgotten about Kate, so who is to say that we haven't forgotten someone before?"

A chilly silence settled upon them at this revelation.

"Well, it's just a guess, but what if when you die or something in the Gallery your existence is erased in this one?" Amelia inquired quietly, blue eyes locked onto her lap.

"Yes, but wouldn't you and I have been affected? You two possibly have an immunity seeing as how you both may have been to this Gallery before, which should be confirmed between you two to tell us, and thus are not affected." Luno reminded, closing his eyes in thought.

"Luno, Lumi seemed deeply upset over Kate and Soaru spoke of a previous incident like it..." Ib left the sentence hanging delicately. She had not the faintest idea if these two were connected or not, but it was worth a shot.

Luno's eyebrows crinkled as he tried to recall the conversation before a sense revelation crossed his features. He smiled, "My sister was right, you are very perceptive, Ib."

He turned to address all of them, "It was just after Soaru arrived, when Lumi started to ramble on about one of her friends going missing and no one remembering her. She had said something about the guidance counselor..."

The mood shifted uncomfortably.

"After Kate went missing, students were ordered to go visit the counselor. I ended up forgetting and didn't go," Amelia added. "Could that be why I remember Kate?"

Luno crossed his arms as he quietly thought it through, "I don't lie talking with the counselor so I opted not to go either."

Ib and Garry blinked, "I don't remember much, honestly. Ib had to convince me that Kate even existed and then I remembered that it was big news just that morning. Yet, I'm sure I did visit the counselor only I don't have any recollection of going."

"I felt something was wrong and it persisted until I saw the drawing." Ib stated.

"Drawing?" Luno inquired curiously.

Ib nodded, explaining how it had come about and the persistent words in her head that wouldn't be thrown to the side. By the end, Luno was sighing and Amelia's forehead had crinkled as she processed all the information.

"It seems that this is going to take more than one lunch break. However, we shouldn't waste the next week not preparing. We should look into this matter and investigate."

"What should we be looking for?" Garry inquired.

"Oh, how about this 'father' guy and the counselor?" Amelia listed.

"There's also the task of finding out who may have gone with Kate into the Gallery," Luno added.

"There's something else," Ib spoke up. "There have been odd disturbances in the room next to mine since I arrived. Just last night I happened to enter and find a strange painting hidden under the bed. It reminds me of Kate's."

"We'll meet up after dinner and check it out, is that alright with everyone?" Garry asked, but no one objected.

"Oh! One more thing before we have to go," Amelia chimed her voice gleeful and mischievous. "This Sunday at the festival Luno and I will go with you two! It'll be so much fun! The others can come too and it'll be a big group event."

She quickly latched onto Luno's arm, sending him a look that clearly implied that she would fill him in later on what was going on. She turned back to the other two who had agreed to go as a four-man group on Sunday to the festival.

"Let's get going; classes will be starting soon." Garry reminded.

They begrudgingly agreed and ushered out, disposing of their trash along the way. Amelia bounced over to pester Garry while the other two made small talk, the atmosphere lifting as they eased back into the comfort of each other and idle chatter. As they parted ways, Garry couldn't help but to wonder just what the connection between the Gallery and himself was.

He didn't want to know, but at the same time he did. It was terrifying either way; to forever wonder who he is or to find out. It was a conundrum lost inside madness. When he dwelled too far into his mind he felt fibers of his being just begging to be released, ripped from him as if it were a blooming bud. Still, there also was the part that coiled itself in slippery tendrils into the far recesses of his mind, sobbing and pleading to just let sleeping dogs lie.

Every part of him was at a constant war with one another, except the thoughts that focused on Ib. Sure, he was insecure and his thoughts were working themselves into clumsy knots about her, but all of him agreed that he didn't want her harmed. Earlier, they had discussed on Kate's companions possibly being in danger, but what about them? It wasn't, likely, limited to just Kate and company; they could also be targeted.

His heart sunk at the thought. He didn't really want to think about it, but it pestered him; the thought that Ib or the others could be harmed, or even die. It was enough to make him break out into a cold sweat, but he persisted towards class. He asked to be excused to make an emergency phone call, which his teacher allowed.

He paced the halls near enough to the class room for comfort, but far enough that he wouldn't be disturbed. Luno had suggested trying to verify what happened that day all those years ago. Maybe it would link up to Ib's? What if it didn't? Was it all just a coincidence, a rather large and misleading one?

Garry would have to figure that out.

His hands trembled as he begrudgingly called the only number in his contact list, ruing the day he was given the contraption. The line rang a few times, his nervousness rapidly increasing in between. After the seventh ring someone finally picked up, "Who's this?"

Garry sweatdropped at his older sister's aggravated tone. Of course he had called when she was irritated. It figured. "Hey, sis, it's me...Garry..."

He could  _feel_ the woman roll her eyes as she responded, "Cut to the chase. FYI, if you can't stop pacing then plant your ass on the floor. Now, stop shaking and give me a reason on why I shouldn't fly over there and hit you for not being in class, dork?"

Garry slid down the wall until he was half seated. He took a few deep breaths to calm his nervousness while trying to figure out a way to broach the topic. His sister tended to get rather sensitive about it.

"I need to know about  _that_ day. It's really important."

The other line was quiet for a beat.

"For the millionth time, I've already told you what happened to you!"

Garry held the phone away as she went off on a tangent. He patiently waited for her to finish before replying, "Sis, I'm serious. Who was I meeting? Why? Had I gone to any places up to a month before the accident? If so, where?"

"What the hell is this, 21-questions?"

He paused, allowing her to collect herself and sort through it all before adding, "Have you been lying to me?"

There was a tired sigh, "I haven't exactly been telling you the whole truth. I know you were meeting someone at some cafe...I believe you met them at that stupid exhibit you went to?"

"Which one? Do you remember the name of the person or the gallery?" Garry quickly listed off, trepidation sweeping through him at the prospect that this really could be linked to Ib's own story.

"Chill the hell out! One at a time, no, I have a better idea...I'll mail you some of the stuff you kept from the exhibit and text you the details of what I remember."

"Why can't you tell me now?"

"'Cause it was a long time ago and I don't have all that crap in front of me! You've waited these past few years, another few days won't kill you!"

Anger seeped into him. "You're right, I've been waiting years for even the smallest detail to remember who I am, something that you as my family were supposed to help me with, but can see now that you didn't give a damn." He hung up before she could reply and laid his head on his knees.

He hadn't meant to get so angry. His sister was someone who left things out if she didn't write it all down. He knows that. Yet, her last comment had pushed him over the edge. Why hadn't she told him the whole truth before? Why couldn't she say it now? This was all so frustrating and he just wanted to yell and punch something! Why couldn't she understand that not knowing had slowly been killing him since he awoke? It's painful, so painful.

The possibilities of who he was swirled in his head, bring them a whirlwind of such horrible images. He could have been a serial murderer, a rapist, a pedophile, a criminal, or a corrupt politician...maybe even a cab driver. He still doesn't know. It's painful and horrifying. If he was some ax-murderer than would a misplaced memory stop him from killing again if he suddenly got the overwhelming urge to?

During his recovery these thoughts had cycled, feeding him lies and deceit. He didn't trust his doctor when he assured him his record was cleaner than blank memory. It had taken his sister beating it into him and forcing a gun into his hand while directing it to her forehead for him to get that he probably wasn't some type of murderer. That incident had been really traumatic and shocked him back into reality.

Garry felt ready to cry, but just as he was ready to give up he felt like he was being watched. He lifted his head enough to peer up, shocked to find Ib staring back at him from her own crouching position. "What are you-"

She cut him off by pushing his head back into his knees. She got to her feet and turned around, "I'll make sure no one bothers you."

"Thank you," he softly croaked, his voice cracking as a few tears spilled from his eyes. However, all his anger fled, leaving behind regret for how he had acted. His sister had been the one by his side after he awoke from his comatose, helping him along the way. She had, and still is, worried about him. He would call her and apologize tomorrow.

His thoughts drifted to Ib and he silently thanked whatever deity was out there for her. Her attempt to console him was better than the first time when they had gotten lost when they first arrived. At that time, she had just squatted down and stared at him in her own way of trying to cheer him up. Garry agreed with Lumi, Ib was perceptive. Her awkward attempts to comfort people, though unorthodox, were rather cute and meaningful than just asking if he was okay.

He wiped away the unshed droplets and stood up. He glanced at Ib and then at the floor. He knew that Ib wouldn't press him for information if he didn't want to talk about it, which he was thankful for. He decided to go out on a whim and ask, "What are you doing here?"

"Class is over."

Garry paled. A glance at his watch confirmed this fact and he started off trying to comprehend that he had spent his whole class period on the phone with his sister and then wallowing in self pity. The two headed to Garry's class, the lavenderette apologizing profusely for taking the whole class, and promising to make up the assignment.

The teacher waved it off, handing Garry an assignment sheet and instructing him to take a quiz on how to prepare some type of German dish that would account for his participation in class. After ten minutes, the two went to the cafeteria and proceeded to grab trays. After some time they made it to the table and plopped down, noticing that Amelia, Luno, and Gillian had not arrived yet. They seated themselves and noticed that Dmitri seemed to be in a rather foul mood.

Ib gave pause, assessing the situation at the table. Soaru was the only other participant as Lumi's practice would run late and the others had yet to arrive. She thought back to her first day at St. Rose and how Dmitri had helped to calm her nerves by simply being kind towards her. She debated on whether or not she should attempt to dissuade his mood. Finally, she decided on something small.

"Are you not going to eat?" she asked, not bothering to glance at the untouched food on his plate. His eyes briefly met her vermillion ones before looking back towards the door. He didn't bother responding, which Ib took in strides, though it stung a bit.

Garry came to the rescue by roping her back into his own conversation with Soaru which, to Ib, was rather dull as Soaru seemed a bit off, though trying to appear normal, which caused an uneasiness to poison the conversation. Garry seemed to be catching on, but ignoring it all the same.

The two shared a look, questions mirroring each other, but no answer to be given. Ib had a small suspicion that Dmitri was upset over someone, judging by how he was trying so hard to not look like he was watching the entrances, which means that it could be because Ib had avoided the question of why they had come out of a janitor's closet the other day.

Gillian drifted over to the table a moment later, sighing as she sat down. The red-head briefly answered the half-hearted question about her day before eating, not really paying attention to anything in particular.

By this point Ib and Garry were uneasy. Tension radiated from the normally talkative table that was oddly silent today. It reminded Ib of unpleasant memories, such as the time a little boy had to sit across from her at a table during a party. It had taken him barely five seconds before he started bawling and yelling that only monsters have red eyes. His parents apologized profusely, but the damage had been done. From then on many of the children had dubbed her 'demon' or 'monster.' Even her name had been used against her, which is why they agreed to put her nickname on her transcript here. Whenever she introduced herself it was always with her nickname.

"Are you alright?" Garry whispered, to which Ib jumped at. She hadn't realized that her eyes had slowly started to water. She swallowed the negative feelings and gave a small nod in reply before turning back to her plate.

At that present moment she happened to see Amelia walk into the lunchroom and skip over to the lunch line, whispering to Luno about something or another. She glanced over at Dmitri and nearly cringed: he looked livid. Gillian's lips had pursed as Soaru remained neutral.

The tension sharpened significantly, but Ib was stuck in her chair. Her instincts were screaming for flight, warning her that she was likely to get hurt, just like all the other times, but instead she remained seated. If she moved it would draw attention to herself and she wanted to make herself as small as possible.

Amelia arrived at the table, spouting an apology for being late. "Sorry, I had to change and then Mr. Diu wanted to see me."

"What, you fucking him too, da?"

Ib felt the bite behind the harsh language. Amelia's smile slowly wavered as her brows creased in question, "What?"

"I just implied that you're a whore, but I guess we can add slow to the list as well." He sneered.

"This isn't funny," Amelia merely replied. Ib watched as her gaze shifted uneasily and her shoulders slightly hunched inwards as if to protect her.

"I think that's enough," Soaru piqued up, but it was half hearted and small.

"Cut the good guy act, I know for a fact that you're sick of it too!" Dmitri ordered, and the young Japanese man didn't argue as he knew his friend was right.

"I'm tired of it too," Gillian voiced as she crossed her arms. "You were always slow and noisy, but I didn't take you for someone who would hurt other people's feelings."

"What are you guys talking about?" Luno interrupted as he arrived, having been distracted with speaking to another student about a project.

"I can't stand either of you. A stupid, ugly, rotten girl who can't even shoot a decent picture and some narcissistic orphan."

Ib felt something slice at her heart as Amelia's face distorted with each insult thrown her way. She looked between them, not understanding how it had all come to this so quickly. The only thing Ib could really comprehend was that her heart beat was starting to accelerate and she was shaking uncontrollably, her hands balling into fists. Ib was scared, unsure of why this was going on. She had felt angry before, but never something like this.

A chair screeched across the floor. It took Ib a moment to realize that it had been her chair, and even longer to register that the angry voice was her own. "Don't ever talk about her again like that! What type of friend are you?"

Though surprised by the outburst, adrenaline bounced Dmitri back, "I'm no longer friends with the likes of them. They only started acting strange when you and Garry started showing up, so why don't you both just get lost, da? You're eyes are freaky and I can't stand looking at you!"

Ib felt like someone had slapped her. She tried to tell herself that it was nothing, that it was normal, but this time the blow had been from her blind spot. She hadn't ever had many friends, so to have Dmitri and the others except her had been a treasured moment. She hadn't expected for someone she had accepted as a friend to throw those words back at her.

Her vision started to blur for some reason and it took her gently touching her eyes to realize that she was crying. Shocked by her own tears she hadn't registered that Garry, passive and easy to startle Garry, had done something no one expected him to do. He had stood up to his full height and grabbed Dmitri's collar, raising a fist to punch him.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTE: The actions of Dmitri and the others are intentional as it is going to help further the plot. Plus, there may be a reason behind it.


	15. Chapter 15

> "The main thing is to be moved, to love, to hope, to tremble, to live."
> 
> -Auguste Rodin
> 
>  

Dark waves clash in rapid succession, ripping the virtuous wings of petals. Oh, Lady of Fortuna hath spun the wheel of God's cruelty, letting it turn tumultuously in self-loathing and misunderstanding. Cruel mistress doth cry; misery is companion to weak chastity and bubbling bitter brew. A storm arises from the deep, coal, abyss with ravenous hunger to dominate the fowls.

Sparks fanned by embers, a smoldering rampage burning bright. Oh, the wheel hath spun, a gentle plead, an ache, oh tears of the lily! Within her breast lies a caution, a collar for the intolerable, and a gentle nudge for the lost. Anger's breeding dulls to charcoal, used to draw misshapen shadows within art.

* * *

Ib hurried forward to help Amelia and Luno in dissuading Garry from harming his fellow classmate. Amelia was pleading as she pulled at the arm holding Dmitri suspended a few inches off the ground. Luno was trying to get in between in order to face both of them, and Ib hugged him from the side. "Please stop, Garry."

Garry gave pause before letting Dmitri go. He turned and stalked from the room, Ib about to follow but Luno stopped her.

"Let him calm down."

Ib merely nodded before her eyes landed on Amelia. The normally happy girl had a strange dazed look on her face, which was painful to look at. Ib shakily walked over, ignoring the curious stares of whispering students, and grabbed her friend's hand before tugging her out of the cafeteria.

Getting Amelia away was more important.

They had veered off the path to the dorms at some point, Amelia leading. The only conversation was between the trees and insects that dwelled within the woods. Side by side they aimlessly walked. Grass crunched under their feet, the wind whistled and danced in eccentric patterns, and the clouds overhead wordlessly floated without a care in the world.

They didn't keep track of time, but it seemed to slow for them as the looming shadows of trees stretched endlessly onwards. Thoughts, worries, and fear were swept away with the tide as the dusk slipped into nightfall. Red and orange hues dying out like small embers never meant to roar to life.

Long after the sun had retreated and the moon had risen, the trees came to an end. As they stepped into the clearing time caught up. Amelia dropped to her knees, droplets pouring from her eyes. Her hand clung tightly to Ib's, not wanting to relinquish the hand that had taken her from that place. Her chest hurt as her knees itched from the grass. Her free hand selfishly groping clumps of grass and kneading it before ripping the plant out.

Ib bent down and pulled Amelia to her in an embrace. Vermillion orbs stared up at the millions of stars, reveling in their majesty and mystery as her friend shook with sobs. The colours were gorgeous, blues and whites for miles. Stars twinkled at her, gazing at her in retrospect. Her eyes blurred, the glimmering auras clumping together to form fuzzy shapes. Hot falling stars slid down her cheeks, making no sound throughout their descent. Showers fell from above, each coming right after the other. These showers were special though; they could cry out and voice themselves though only in sobs and wails.

Sometimes, a person will play the stone. They ground everyone else while supporting them, but that doesn't make them invulnerable. Even mountains can be moved, worn away from erosion, or even tumble. It's alright to fumble and chip, to caste away the role of the stone and be a feather; vulnerable but durable.

Side by side, through cracked lenses the stars are visible. Sparkling and glistening, endless seas of lights encompass them. Shadows cautiously guard the edges as moonlight gently caresses the small clearance lovingly. No words are spoken as stars twinkle within their eyes, reflecting beautiful majesty and rarely a falling star. All is there, within those stars, but they are unobtainable and far.

In her haze, Amelia's arm reaches out as if to grasp for the impossible, her hands cupping nothing but breeze. All her thoughts are lagged and bewildered, her eyes heavy. Questions ripple through her mind, but are quieted in front of the sky. Cognitively, her gaze drifted over to Ib's own that were still soaking in the gleaming stars.

Mere moments later Ib met her gaze and reflecting back at her were deep emotional scars and fears, along with the feeling to conceal it. Amelia's broke first, the stars leaving her eyes.

"I d-don't know what t-to do. All these negative things keep jumbling together and there's this little voice that's t-telling me I deserve it because I really am stupid and slow." Amelia choked her voice cracking.

"You're not. No one's good at everything and its people who don't understand that who are stupid. Amelia is someone who keeps everyone smiling and likes to tease Garry. She's always looking out for other people and has their best interests at heart. She's also very brash and headstrong." Ib declared, her tone and eyes reflecting nothing but honesty, "I'm truly happy that she's my best friend. I've never had one before."

Amelia smiled and poked the brunette's cheek, "Well I have a cooler best friend named Ib. She's pretty awkward and dense; she has a tag-a-long named Garry, and is really kind...though she can be really sarcastic at times. She also has vermilion coloured eyes, which are real, but she's afraid of showing them off."

Ib cracked a small smile as she blocked one of Amelia's pokes.

A few minutes passed as they returned to looking up at the stars. It was broken again by Amelia. "Hey, Ib, do you remember when I told you I liked someone?"

The brunette in question simply gave a slight nod.

"I-I'm pretty sure that h-he doesn't like me anymore. We aren't even friends."

Ib's eyes widened as she put the pieces together, "Amelia, was it Dmitri?"

"Yea," was the soft reply? "I think I still like him, even after all that, but it really hurts."

Ib looked to her other side and got an idea, "Amelia, do you know how to make flower crowns?"

"Huh? No, not really."

"Want to try? Maybe Garry will wear one tomorrow or Luno if we ask."

Amelia giggled as she imagined the two of them wearing misshaped flower crowns before sitting up and agreeing.

For an undisclosed amount of time they went about picking flowers and threading them together into crowns that progressively evolved. Their chatter pertained to what colours would match who's hair and how they would convince them to wear them the whole day. Sometimes it drifted into the past as they retold sad, exciting, and embarrassing stories.

"Ib! Amelia!" The two paused to watch as Garry and Luno emerged from the shadows at some point, worry etched onto their faces.

Spotting each other, Amelia pulled Ib up and ran over before placing the crowns on each of their heads. "Fabulous! They turned out awesome." Amelia cheered, hugging Ib from the side.

"Do you two know what time it is?" Luno asked, his brow twitching. He sighed when they both shook their heads, even though Ib wore a watch that she had conveniently forgotten about.

"Let's have a party! I brought drinks." Amelia grabbed her bag and pulled out a few soft drinks and a can of tea. "Here are some cookies that I swindled too."

"Amelia, just what type of party is this?" Garry sighed.

"Neh, Ib, have you ever had a faerie party?" Amelia's smile nearly glowed in the dark when she shook her head no. "Let's have one now then!"

She dragged Ib over to Garry and moved them into the position for a waltz. She grabbed Luno's hand and he sighed before waltzing with her, moving slowly so that Ib and Garry could clumsily try to copy. They slowly got the hang of it, Ib before Garry as her family had dragged her to many formal parties and believed that it was a must to know at least how to dance a bit, though no one ever asked her.

Garry clumsily stepped on her toes, again, and profusely apologized. Ib gave a small smile and began softly counting off for him so keep rhythm. After a good twenty minutes he didn't need Ib to time it and was working on not staring at his feet.

"Switch!" Amelia called as she appeared before them. She curtsied to Ib, "May I have this dance?"

Ib placed her hand in hers, "You may."

They elegantly spun and twirled around the clearing before Amelia started to throw in moves from the tango and other various ballroom dances. She glanced over at Luno and Garry who were staying stationary and tutted at them, "Hey, I want to see some yaoi material over there!"

"Yaoi?" Garry asked hesitantly. Luno shook his head sadly and placed a hand on his shoulder, "You don't want to know. Beware of the fujoshis."

Garry didn't bother asking further as Amelia forced them to dance for awhile before switching partners again.

Garry and Luno smiled as the two girls went about dancing, after calling the boys wimps for getting tired, though that was mainly Amelia.

"They seem to be doing alright," Garry spoke up, still worried for them.

"For now. They're distracting themselves from it, which I'm surprised to think is Ib's doing."

"Why would you think that?"

"Amelia doesn't know how to thread flowers together. You can tell who made what. Ib's is more put together while Amelia's is clumsy." Luno supplied as he picked two crowns up off the ground to make his point. "Amelia instigated the impromptu party, but it was a shared agreement. I never thought it was possible to grow so close to someone in just a short amount of time."

"I guess it depends on the person and what you experience together. That's probably why the others lashed out; you and Amelia got involved with the Gallery and have changed in accordance. You both nearly died, which is enough to push people closer together."

"I understand that. As I was waiting for that last petal to fall I promised Amelia something, and then when Ib saved us and cried over us I promised her that I wouldn't die, but that's not something I should promise someone." Luno confided as he leaned back.

"No, it's not. If it's a promise, though, you'll be more likely to strive towards keeping yourself alive." Garry pointed out.

"Point taken."

"Early at the cafe, you said to try to confirm what happened that day of the accident..."

"Yeah, did you find anything out?"

"I called my older sister and she's going to send me a package with some stuff that relates to what I was doing and a text for details. She did divulge that I was going to meet someone that I had met at some exhibit sometime prior."

"I see, hopefully it'll clear up a few of our questions. For right now, let's not talk about it." Garry nodded with a small smile just as Ib appeared and shyly asked him to dance. Luno smirked as Garry took her hand and went off. Amelia took Garry's seat as she plopped down, somehow elegant but inelegant at the same time.

"Phew, that was a work out," she babbled while popping open one of the soft drinks open and taking an elongated sip as she chugged nearly half of it down. Luno found it humorous as he watched her.

"Yo, blond brows, we're totally still on for Sunday, right?" Her face held a smile as she looked at him, becoming more excited when he nodded. "Awesome! This is perfect, it'll be just the...four of us and then we'll ninja away and leave Ib and Garry to a cute date at the festival."

Luno chose to ignore the way she hesitated when realizing that the others wouldn't be going with them in a large group. "Neh, neh, Luno, do you think Ib and Garry would make a cute couple?"

Luno raised a brow, "If I were an outsider I would be questioning when he would pop the question. However, I know their status and once they get past being shy and dense then yes, they would make a nice pair."

"Great! Hey, the concert is in two days. How is Lumi doing?"

"Excited, stressed, and is about as dense as those two when it comes to that rotten bed-head. In regards to what happened earlier and how she'll take it? I'm not positive on one reaction, but she'll likely get to the bottom of what happened and try to make everyone get along unless her anger issues act up and she kills us all."

Amelia gave a sheepish laugh, "It's sad that we aren't kidding when we say that."

Luno got to his feet and held out his hand to her, "May I have the closing dance?"

Amelia let him pull her up and danced to the music within her own imagination.

At some point in the middle of the night they headed back to the dorms, exhausted from their party and all the events that the day had brought them. It was surreal that such a good day could spiral so far down only to rise from the ashes like a phoenix. Only the question of what tomorrow may bring seemed to linger at the back of their minds.

* * *

She giggled to herself as the lavenderette raised his fist to punch the other boy. Really, the latter was fun to play with. His emotions and mind were all jumbled up like a large puzzle. It was easy enough to influence him a bit and plant the seeds of hatred. Really, these people are pathetic!

She watched as Ib managed to calm lavender-head down, her expression morphing into a pout when she left with the blue-eyed girl. She really wanted to watch those boys be violent and stupid, but at least she got to see Ib. It was always interesting with that brunette around.

Grumbling to herself, she left the room and stalked into the shadows of the hallway. Her footsteps didn't echo when they hit the ground, which sort of pissed her off. However, she was on a mission!

A Cheshire smile split her face as she giggled. Soon enough she would get rid of that witch and then she would be free to move around more to operate. Now, all she needed was to get the pieces for her game.

She walked into a tiny room located where no one would trespass. Her grin only growing when she stared up at the painting, "Hello, sister, do you want to play a game again?"

The painting's one eye blinked back its answer and the girl giggled, "Yay! I know you're going to have so much fun! You always do when you get to go play."

She picked up the painting and exited the room, marching up the stairs and into the theatre where she would hide her special present. "Don't play just yet, okay? I'll let you know when the hunt begins."

Footsteps gave her pause as she hid among the shadows of the drawn curtains. Her body grew rigid and statue like as she waited. The door finally cracked open as an older lady with gray haired strode in and thoroughly looked around for a few minutes before making her way out, casting one last glance back towards the large drapes.

"Did you see her? That's target number one. Oh, I know she doesn't look like much fun, but she is so don't worry, you'll see!"

The girl laughed and hid the painting before skipping out of the room, the doors slamming closed behind her as she went.

 


	16. Chapter 16

> "We work in the dark, we give what we have. Our doubt is our passion, and our passion is our task. The rest is the madness of art."
> 
> ~Henry James
> 
>  

Cognitive wheels spun in place, rivets rolling deep inside the clockwork of a fallacy known as time. Golden hues lit the sky in glory, ascending to the highest aptitude, before the descent began. The glory was different this time, a path leading the way to slumber. All continued on in cycles, rolling and rolling without pause.

As twilight lit the canvas, time seemed to give a small reflecting pause. Nothing in this cycle would ever be real, simply a fabricated dream that all clung to in hopes of  _normalcy_ , a strange thing. Time rushed in, only slowing for the bored, and left impressions upon the earth and sun.

* * *

Ib blinked as she realized the day had passed by rather quickly. That morning she had walked with Amelia and Garry to the cafeteria where they had situated themselves at a different table that Luno was already seated at when they arrived. Luno and Garry had made it their personal mission to make sure that both of the girls' backs were towards those they once considered friends.

Lumi had appeared briefly with some guy in tow, surprised at the tension and made Luno promise to tell her what happened later, before having to go practice for the concert that was taking place the next day.

Most of school passed in a similar fashion. Many students involved were excused from classes and were rushing around to practice or prepare. By the time lunch came around, they were all thankful for the small relief. Garry and Ib proposed eating outside for a change, pointing out that fall was right around the corner and soon it would be too cold to eat outside. The other two agreed and the duration of lunch consisted of the concert and where they should meet to go as a group. The conversation also dipped into the festival, information gathering on the Gallery (which nothing had come of), and finally Ib reminding them of the strange painting in the room next to her.

"I totally forgot!" Amelia cried, "Why don't we check it out tonight instead?"

They had agreed and lunch ended, but the last period class flashed by in an instant. Dinner had rolled around and they found themselves seated at the same table they had used at breakfast. It wasn't long before they finished and headed to the female dormitory.

Ib slowly walked ahead, trepidation kept in a glass case as she gripped the knob to open the door. Her mind debated whether or not to do this. If they confirmed her rising suspicions regarding the painting's possibility of being like Kate's then this would mean that they were dealing with something that was intentionally affecting them somehow...there also was the constant noises and cries. When she had informed the others of the noises and whispers, they had been surprised and uneasy, but a part of them wanted to believe that all this was nothing, just some fabricated hearing that had resulted from an overgrown branch scraping the window or poor maintenance.

Seeing her internal battle, Garry placed his hand over her's while giving her a small reassuring smile. She returned her glance to the door, took a breath, and then turned the knob.

It was locked.

"That was anticlimactic." Luno dryly stated, but even he knew that just walking in would have been too easy.

"Oh! I have an idea!" Amelia chimed before starting towards the door while telling them to stay put.

Nearly seven minutes later they heard something beyond the door followed by a series of clatter before the lock clicked out of place. The door swung open and, as if a gale had been whipping around, air rushed past them. For a mere moment their vision slanted and changed. It wasn't Amelia on the other side of the threshold, but a girl with long black hair and green coloured eyes.

_One day_

_I fell asleep_

_and_

_never woke up._

The image blinked out, the words filtering through their minds long after. Ib barely registered Luno passing her to catch Amelia as she wobbled dangerously. Ib herself could feel Garry's grip on her shoulder keeping her from sinking onto the floor.

Once her vision settled, Ib peered straight ahead into the room and felt a wave of uneasiness jolt up and down her spine. There, in the center of the room where it hadn't been before, was the painting laying innocently on the floor.

Ib felt herself shudder and lean into Garry, subconsciously gripping the loose material of his pants for comfort. Flashes of memories blinded her, remembering back to the day they arrived when that thing had sucked her into the floor and that one time when she had gone to the nurse, and in each case she now connected that one sentence to them. However, this was different. Ib had only heard one voice instead of the raucous intertwining of many.

'Are those voices the people who were forgotten?' Ib pondered this as her heart sunk deeper into her chest.

There had been so many voices.

"Ib, are you alright?" Garry asked worriedly, staring down at the girl's tear-stained face.

Ib turned around to bury her face in his chest. It took her a few minutes, but she managed to calm down and face them, apologizing for her sudden fit. The others waved it off, waiting for her to reveal what she must have figured out.

"I've heard it before, that sentence, but in fragments and spoken by a mixture of voices. I couldn't help but wonder if they're the voices of those who've been forgotten."

Amelia's face clouded with a slow horror as she realized the extent of what Ib was saying. Her body shuddered, remembering that one voice that had whirled around her, the haunted tone to it, and couldn't fathom more of them yelling at the same time in despair. It was awful enough to know that Kate was missing and people were in danger, but just how many people were forgotten. Worse yet, how many people that were once close to her had she forgotten, if any?

Amelia felt scared, more so than when she had nearly died.

Luno furrowed his brow in concentration, imploring Ib to explain both instances when she heard these voices. As the brunette filled him in on the extra details, his mind began to sort through the information while also trying to discern why that voice had sounded familiar. His temples began to throb in pain as a blurry image came to mind, but was gone before he could make it out.

It took Ib, Garry, and Amelia's warm hands on his shoulders to realize that he hadn't been paying attention. He looked into their worried eyes and assured them he was fine, just drained from all that was going on, before walking further into the room. He could hear Garry close the door behind them, but knew he did not shut it all the way, just in case.

They all stood around the painting, Ib mentioning that it hadn't been in the middle of the room before, and scrutinized it. To put it simply, the artwork was amazing. Even unfinished it carried its weight from the silver cage to the locks and the girl. Luno's headache came back the longer he stared at her, briefly remembering the image of that girl taking Amelia's place upon opening the door, though brief.

It was then Luno noticed something, and he needed to make sure that he wasn't overthinking this. "Ib, you're an art student, what are some of the symbolic meanings behind eyes?"

"They are the windows to the soul..." Ib trailed off, knowing that Luno had also noticed one of the strangest things about this painting.

The girl's eyes were missing.

Now, normally this could be passed off as something the artist intentionally did or the like, but they had a feeling this wasn't the case. The girl herself was in vivid details, as was the cage and scenery around her. Only one of the locks and various minorities were left unfinished, along with the eyes. The face usually is done before the rest of the scenery, at least in their opinions, and to leave the eyes for last did not seem correct. If anything, they felt that the eyes were not filled in because they  _couldn't_  be.

"One day I fell asleep and never woke up," Garry softly whispered to himself, running his mouth over each dip and curve to the sentence. He couldn't make heads nor tails of it, but dread had blossomed in his chest. Whatever it meant, he was sure he wasn't going to like it one bit.

"Okay, instead of just staying here and coming up with nothing, why don't we start off by trying to figure out who used to have this room?" Amelia voiced, wanting to leave the room as soon as possible. "If it's anything like Kate's then maybe it being unfinished proves that whoever lived here may still be alive."

"But, if they've been forgotten no one will remember." Garry put in, his face morphing into a frown at the complexity of the situation.

"We won't know unless we try. Meanwhile, we should also still be looking into the building's history and the counselor." Luno reminded, tearing his eyes away from the painting.

"What should we do about that painting?" Amelia asked, gaze shifting towards the art piece.

Before anyone could respond they suddenly felt an icy chill. It was Garry and Ib who reacted first, pulling the other two out of the room and slamming the door shut just as they heard the voices repeating that one sentence over and over. The door muffled the sound, but it persisted for nearly ten minutes before vanishing as if nothing had ever been amiss.

"That was...freaky," Amelia relented as her thundering heart started to slow back into its normal rhythm.

"Agreed." Garry stated, leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the hall.

"I think we may have been on to something the other day," Luno suddenly voiced, "Amelia hypothesized that when someone is taken from here that they're forgotten, and Mary told Garry that those who visit the Gallery become vessels for the core. Now, we only know Kate is alive thanks to a painting, and now here's another that might be of another forgotten person. From this we can infer two things, the first is that these paintings are like loading bars and once complete are whole paintings. The second thing is centered on my own thoughts based off the information given, but what if after these paintings are complete that whoever was taken dies?"

"It would make sense. This life energy is being transferred to this core, and so there is nothing left for the vessel." Ib summarized, "But, if this is true then what purpose do these paintings serve?"

"That's another million dollar question," Luno replied while running a hand through his short locks.

Amelia grumbled, whining about more unanswered questions. The others silently agreed, wondering when they would finally be able to obtain a solid answer to at least one of their questions.

"Well, let's regroup tomorrow at around one for lunch. However, let's at least try to look up something useful before hand." Luno stated, reminding the other three that they wouldn't be having classes due to the concert.

After that, they decided to split up. It had been a long hour and they were tired out, but Ib realized she had forgotten something back in her last period classroom and went off to go get it. She sighed inwardly at her own forgetfulness, realizing it had been happening more and more often. To think that she even forgot one of her favourite sketchbooks was an insult! It had been a gift from one of her art teachers in middle school. She had resolved never to use it until she became a better artist; she had started using it two months ago. All her submissions to get into St. Rose were sketched in that book before being redrawn on larger paper.

She arrived back into the classroom, her teacher acknowledging her and chatting with her on the way out. Ib grabbed her beloved sketchbook from the teacher's desk, already having thanked the man for placing it there for safe keeping, and left the room. She got as far as closing the door before someone stopped her.

Familiar pumps clicked against the linoleum floors as they approached and Ib slowly turned when she was addressed by the woman. Apprehension made her muscles jumpy as she recognized the neat graying hair that was tied into a bun, the sharp glasses, and stiff clothes of the very lady who she and Garry had met on their first day. In her mind, Ib had already dubbed her Gray Haired Lady as she hadn't told them her name yet.

"Ah, Miss...Ib, I do hope you have been doing well. It seems you've been getting into some trouble as of late, such as sneaking into the school after curfew." Her tone was even and light, though the words themselves were meant to tell Ib that she had been caught.

"To my office," she didn't wait for Ib to follow as she pivoted elegantly and walked off down the hall, Ib moving to follow with her eyes down casted.

Ib didn't feel bad for blatantly disobeying the rules, only that she was caught. However, hope blossomed in her heart at the idea that this woman was possibly just using some tactic to make her think that she had dirt on her while, in reality, she was counting on a confession. However, Ib wasn't such a great liar and wasn't comfortable with saying anything.

It was when Ib was passing into the woman's office that she noticed something that made her freeze where she stood, "Excuse me, but are you an administrator?"

Ib already knew the answer, but she needed confirmation that she wasn't misunderstanding.

The woman turned and gave a coy smile, her dark eyes peering into Ib's red ones, "Child, you can read that plaque as clear as day. That is who I am, Ms. Creo, the guidance counselor. Now stop your prattling and take a seat."

Ib hesitantly sat on one of the comfy sofas, her eyes never leaving the woman for more than a few seconds. Ms. Creo rolled her eyes at the girl, "There's no need to stare, I don't bite or care about your unease. I simply want to chat with you, as a part of my job, so tell me how the last few days have been for you."

Ib remained aloof as she summarized her time at the school in one word, "Eventful."

Ms. Creo gave a small smile at the simplistic answer before going in, "Ah, but that's not all is there?"

Ib frowned, "That is not my story to tell."

Ms. Creo seemed to realize she wasn't going to get anywhere and switched tactics, "It was brought to my attention that there was a trivial spat in the cafeteria this evening with you, Jones, Braginski, Edmunds, and Garry at the center of it. Care to explain?"

"A fight between friends."

"I understand some horrible things were said, and I need to make sure that no one was seriously harmed. In exchange, I won't take this to the principal and will vouch for that friend of yours if he's reported for nearly punching Braginski." Ib stared at Ms. Creo blankly, considering the offer before nodding her answer.

"Good, now let's start at the beginning. Remember, honesty is the key as anything you say will be completely confidential." Ms. Creo said, her personality shifting, making her seem as if she actually cared about what had happened.

Ib didn't hold back as she recounted the events, not leaving a word out but faltered upon the harsh words that Dmitri had aimed her way, but after stumbling over that the rest went smoothly. Ms. Creo had stopped writing and focused her full attention on the words coming from the brunette's mouth, her mouth etching into a small frown at the emotion that this child was trying so desperately to hid.

"You have problems with your eye colour." It wasn't a question and even if it was Ib was still startled at how Ms. Creo had so casually called it out. Staring at her feet, she nodded her confirmation to this fact. The woman sighed, "Why?"

There was no response.

"I'll tell you what I think then, throughout your childhood people have treated you differently, pointed at you, jeered, and made you feel like an outcast. Your parents did nothing but tell you that it was alright, that you were fine just the way you are, that you had so and so's eyes, but then they left you alone to deal with it. You grew up isolated and felt alone, didn't you?"

Ib nodded as she glanced longingly at the door, wanting nothing more than to just escape, but she remained seated.

"Do you feel as if you're missing something, forgetting something important? I know you do, I know everything, and you need to know that until you can handle your issues then you aren't fit for going back to the...Gallery. You've been holding up, but there's no way some brat like you or your friends can do anything but get yourselves killed." Ms. Creo bitterly went on.

Ib felt anger surge through her and she was standing in an instant, voice deadly as she tried to calm herself to speak clearly, "I will not run away from this and you won't stop us. We promised to help Mary and save Kate, and anyone else along the way. I know that I've been here before, that you attempted to erase Kate from my memories and everybody elses."

"And what if you have to make the choice between yourself and a friend? What would you do?" Ms. Creo also stood up, her voice deadly calm.

Ib balled her fists at her side, using the same tone, "If that ever were to happen then I would sacrifice myself after searching for a different solutions. I am not naive enough to believe that taking someone's place will make them grateful, in fact they may come to hate me for it, but I am also not afraid to make that decision should I have to."

Ms. Creo slowly walked over, never breaking eye contact. She took Ib's hands in hers, cupping them, "I understand, but this will still be dangerous. You should know that trouble does not just lurk in the Gallery, but here as well. Until you are ready, I will be tightening security so that you may not go back. Besides, if you wish to truly accomplish your goals, then you must first defend your home."

"I warn you now, things are going to escalate from here on out. I want you back here in my office tomorrow at seven O' clock sharp, and not a moment later. Come by yourself and I will provide you with some answers."

"What about the others?"

She chuckled, "Ah, it's all about tactics. If all of you were here at once then there would be no trust. Hearing my credibility from you would be worth more than a bar of gold, no hurry back to the dorm."

Ib slipped out of the room and left through the cafeteria, her sketchbook tightly gripped under her arm as she thought over Ms. Creo's words. The woman had always seemed off to her, even when they first met. Oddly, she had never appeared to be affected by the time stopping, always seeming to be near when they returned.

She arrived back to the dorm and set her alarm. Ms. Creo seemed to have quite an extended knowledge on the Gallery, and Ib wasn't going to miss an opportunity like this one, even if it wasn't the safest idea. She closed her eyes and rolled onto her side to stare at the side wall, willing herself to fall asleep.

Tomorrow was going to be an eventful day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Edmunds is Lumi and Luno's last name as they were raised in St. Edmunds orphanage. I don't think I ever mentioned it, so now you know.


	17. Chapter 17

> "The greatest respect an artist can pay to music is to give it life."
> 
> ~Pablo Casals

Hello, there! Goodbye! Dear now, the final sequence of act three has come to be. Be warned, the show is really about to start. It'll end with a fair maiden's sacrifice, but that is far enough away, no need to foreshadow the soon to be start of the end of an act held together by puppet strings, loosely held ties that shall tighten with red strings. Nevermore, a world of black and gray, gravitating towards the finale of a small part, but be aware, it ends in mere nights.

Soon to stop the third, to replace with the fourth.

* * *

Ib's stepped echoed through the corridor as she walked over to Ms. Creo's room, her fist politely knocking before entering the plush room. The gray-haired lady sat at her desk, going over documents as she indicated for Ib to take a seat on the sofa. The brunette closed the door behind her and sat down on the plush sofa, nearly relaxing at its soothing texture.

"Punctual, just what I would expect from you," Ms. Creo spoke to herself, absently stapling a few sheets of paper together before tossing them into a folder that she neatly filed in one of the off-grey cabinets in one corner of the room. She then walked over and indicated for them to leave the room, informing her that "the walls have ears," before leading her outside.

"Miss...Ib, I'm positive that you and your posse have already put it together that I am solely responsible for erasing the memories you and the other students have of these missing children. However, I concur. You would forget them anyway if they were never to return and instead succumbed to the Gallery." Ms. Creo didn't look at her as she softly gazed upon a daisy before pulling away.

"There are two options for the Gallery, either to become a part of it and surrender your life or escape back to reality."

Ib said nothing as she continued to watch the woman stare off into the distance, curious as to what she was seeing way out there. After noticing that Ms. Creo wasn't going to proceed without comment she asked, "If they are going to be forgotten anyway why do you erase them prematurely?"

"If they have started the transition into a painting then I must. The students would start to panic if they knew people were going missing and then the police would get involved, resulting in nothing more than senseless murder. I am here to prevent this and protect the Gallery at the same time."

"Why?"

"A simple sounding question, but complex to answer. I was created for this by the...core, as you would call it, but I am unable to enter the Gallery as I reside in this world. I have used another's life in exchange for this, and I do not plan to waste it."

"Are you unhappy?" Ms. Creo turned to look at the brunette, a strange expression on her face before a rare smile slipped out.

"You, child, are very strange to ask that. I am simply a part of this Gallery, who happens to guard it from the outside, but that is all I can do. My purpose dictates what I must do to protect my home, happiness or unhappiness is invalid."

Ib fiddled with a flower after walking over, standing not even at arm's length, "That's garbage and I'm sure you can come up with a better excuse than that. See, what I observe is a woman that can no longer return home, but tries to convince herself that as long as she follows her objective then she can go back one day. It's a nice thought, but unrealistic because she knows that she's stuck here with a job that she secretly likes, and yet doesn't want to get attached."

Ms. Creo looked over at her, pursing her lips, "You are rather perceptive."

"I inferred most of it based on your actions regarding your job and what you've said to me." Ib responded, waving the compliment off. She didn't believe herself perceptive; she just would happen to notice things at the right time or have general feelings about people. Nothing impressive, but it was nice to be praised once in awhile.

"Clever of you to deduce all that. I will admit that I can not go home and that I am selfish for adoring my life with you children while time also longing for my own homeland. It is an oroboros that forever will loop, but I must be content with what I have and not be greedy for more. I cannot leave this property, ever. I am here in order to chain her down, the Gallery occupant that was able to cross over with the use of taking half a life energy for herself. However, she is a spectator that can only affect other Gallery occupants. As of right now, she is a mischievous brat who likes to toy with emotions."

"Whose life energy did she use?" Ib asked gravely, fearing the answer.

"The girl who used to reside in the room next to yours. You encountered her yesterday, but only just a glimpse. Her body was brought back, but her mind stayed behind." Ms. Creo began walking again, and Ib could only follow as they were submerged in a large hedge maze.

"What became of her?" Ib asked as she glanced at the passing vines and hydrangeas.

"I was able to prevent her body from being a vessel for Ida. She is now at the local hospital and has been deemed comatose with little hope for awakening. Her soul still wonders around the Gallery and often dips into reality, just as you saw yesterday. However, she has already been claimed by the core."

"Did you erase the memory of her also?"

"No, I simply altered it. I made it so that it appeared that she left the school and was in an accident afterwards. Nothing too great, and people tend to forget all on their own. You are not the first to wander into the Gallery, but you and Garry are the first survivors to return." Ms. Creo broke off and turned into a large garden, but it was withered and old. In the center, crushing the mosaic that no longer could be made out, was an old ash tree that was blacker than a starless night and twisted in gnarly knots.

"The Gallery shares many key places with this world and this is one of them," she moved to touch the rough bark with a forlorn expression before gesturing for Ib to do the same.

The brunette planted herself in front of the tree, feeling uneasy at its presence, before reaching a hand out to gingerly touch the bark. It was worn and charred and rough beneath her hand, which she had expected though nothing could have stopped the amazement at the small hum that seemed to resonate throughout the interior.

Ms. Creo gave a small laugh at her amazement, "I told you, this place directly corresponds with the Gallery. This place is this world's representation of the core. What you are touching is its withering life,  _it_  who has slept for far too long."

"Someone told us that they have no idea as to what will happen when this  _it_ awakens, which is why they are fearful. That is the reason behind luring people inside the Gallery, is it not?" Ib hadn't meant it, but her tone was edged towards the end.

"Mary has reasons to be afraid, they all do. None of them have any idea as to what will happen after the awakening. It may seem as if keeping the core asleep would be enough reason to lure people in, but it is only part of the truth. You are a smart child, search for the truth which is located beyond the truth." Ms. Creo replied mystically, thoroughly enjoying the pensive look that Ib was currently making.

"Who's Ida?" Ib finally asked.

"Ah, yes, that ill-tempered child," Ms. Creo's face morphed into one of annoyance, "She's a brat who's trying to cause trouble. The fight that transpired the other day was catalysed by her. Braginski fit the criteria and so she was able to manipulate his emotions, which is why he lashed out so viciously."

Ib gave pause, staring intently at the bark as she thought it over. The way Dmitri had been bothered was rather odd, as were the harsh words. However, those had been his emotions to a certain degree. Ib felt rather heavy as she pondered this, caught between defending Dmitri and still being upset with him for what he said to Amelia and Luno. This Ida person may have catalysed his anger, but the words were his own. Dmitri would have to own up to them and apologize, which is when she would finally decide to forgive him. Until then he was still on her very small list of people to be upset with.

"I see you've reached a conclusion, hopefully it is a sound one." Ms. Creo stated before leading them back into the maze, "Now, back to Ida...she is much like Mary, only her personality is rotten and she's threatening. Her ability to be in this world after swapping places with Acela's mind is rather worrisome. As of right now she does not have a body, but this isn't because she can't. I prevent her from harming any of the other vessels, which there are now eight of as I don't count Acela or Kate anymore."

"She only targets regular students when there is a purpose behind it, which is why I'm warning you to be careful. She is watching you all rather carefully and may use the others around you against you. This wedge that she drove between you all, use it to your advantage." The woman instructed as she expertly turned sharp corners and weaved her way through debris.

"Then I should not reconcile with the others for if I do they will be in danger?" Ib rhetorically asked, rather sullen about the idea of never being able to spend another mealtime with everyone again.

"No, don't be so dramatic. Reconciliation is still on the table, but you must appear to still be opponents. This is for their safety, and while it would be best not to reconcile for now, I can't stop the die that has been cast. If the situation arises, you must decide how to handle it."

"Yes, I understand. Ms. Creo, you have stated that there are eight vessels left in this world at the moment, but before you listed Garry and I as the first survivors to return; what did you mean by this?"

"Child, I'm sure you are aware that this is not your first time experiencing the Gallery, but I digress. This is the first time you have visited this one, the core that combines all Galleries into one single form, and so you are the first survivors of an Exhibit. That is where you encountered Mary before she was finally returned here. However, your visit left lasting impressions on the Gallery that play a major factor in what's going on. This is why you need to be prepared before you even think of going back to save Kate or Mary, which is nigh impossible for the latter as the Gallery is where she belongs."

Ib straightened her posture as she talked, "There has to be some way to help Mary and what about Kate and Acela? How long do they have left?"

Ms. Creo seemed to ponder this before carefully answering, "Acela is in a state of suspension and cannot be affected any longer, unless you manage to bring her mind back from the Gallery. Kate had a bit more than a month at the most, which is peculiar as the process shouldn't be taking this long. But I'm sure that there are many forces working against that man to slow his progress. That is why another vessel has yet to be targeted, but I believe one will soon be selected in hopes of moving along, but this time with the use of trickery. If there are enough vessels then these opposing forces wouldn't be able to help stunt all of the energy transfers..."

"Meaning that they are devoured by the core as energy," Ib finished grimly.

"Now, now, don't fret just yet. I'll tell you a small secret that may help you in the near future; every vessel is able to see the Gallery occupants that happen to be in this world," she exited the maze and gave Ib a long stare, "I, again, warn you to keep your guard up and watch out for Ida's schemes. She's been up to something recently and it could directly impact you all."

"When will we speak again?" Ib asked, hoping that there would be a second time.

"Soon, maybe tonight or Sunday. I'll be around, so just call out if you need me. I have ears in many places. Now, I believe you have a lunch date with some friends in nearly half an hour..." she let the sentence trail off as she started to walk away.

Ib nodded to her back before vocalizing her thanks, but never received an answer.

* * *

"Urgh! This is  _so_  complicated!" Amelia exclaimed impatiently before smacking her forehead against the table in anguish over what Ib had just relayed to them from her earlier conversation with Ms. Creo.

"It's all we have for the moment," Luno countered as he paused in sipping his latte.

"Actually, Amelia and I managed to dig up some information on the school," Garry voiced as Amelia pulled out a thin folder from her bag to show off. "The school was constructed some four centuries ago as a large estate for a famous artist, but it was only used as a summer house and just about a century ago it was renovated to become a school. Strangely, there are no records on the person responsible for proposing or sponsoring the idea."

"Also, some of the renovations were delayed or cancelled entirely! That's why that one particular hallway is closed off, it went unfinished and was abandoned. There are a few other places like it, such as the maze out back, the top most floor, but that one can be attributed to it not being handicap accessible.* Another place is apparently sections of the boiler room and then various classrooms that are kept locked." Amelia handed out the documents as she spoke, indicating certain sections or maps.

Garry pulled out an old blue-print and took it from there, "That's not all, this map is one before the renovations. Now, look at this one here-" he picked up another map and placed it before them "-it's from after the renovations. As you can see, they don't match up. That hallway was excluded in the newest print, which means that part of the building shouldn't exist. There were plans to get rid of it, but in the middle of construction the team quit."

"I went and searched the newspaper files from that far back, but nothing was mentioned about it, not even a testimony or report!" Amelia broke in as she pouted at the dead end she had hit.

"Maybe they experienced it, the Gallery," Ib pointed out, "That hallway is how we all entered the Gallery in the first place and how we've gotten in since. It wouldn't be too far fetched to believe that they may have experienced something and were kept silent."

Luno choked on his latte, coughing as he asked Ib to repeat her last two words. She did and frowned, unsure of what he was getting at. They could be kept silent, such as Ms. Creo threatening them or losing someone in the Gallery.

"Kept silent! You mentioned that Ms. Creo simply altered just about everyone's memory of...Acela, so what if she influenced this the same way? If these construction workers were swept into the Gallery and didn't come back there would be too many questions before they were forgotten by the public, so why not simply list that they quit halfway and then tell the company they worked for that they would be contacting someone different to finish repairs? It's simple and no one would think too much of it, just give a sour expression to a bunch of quitters and a nod at finding a different company before moving on. It also allows for the hallway to be forgotten since it was never meant to be renovated." Luno explained.

"I see, and if they did higher any more workers than they would also just be sucked into the Gallery. This was probably decided after the first construction team 'quit.'" Garry summarized in awe at the careful planning.

"There's also another reason on why the newest blueprints don't include that hallway; to keep students from snooping. There are architecture courses here and just how many of those students do you think happen to look at these blueprints per day? If that hallway were to be included those students would be able to trace it and find out that the renovations were never included, which could result in them going off to find out what's at the end of the hall as that part of the buildings also isn't recorded here. If that were to happen then countless students would be missing." Luno further hypothesized as he indicated the blueprints whenever necessary.

"So, whomever altered these records was trying to keep the students safe?" Garry inquired as he was even more awed with all the careful precautions that someone had gone out of their way to make.

"It appears that way, but for all we know those workers really did quit and didn't bother saying anything to some journolist, maybe there were other stories that weighed more or it simply wasn't that big of a deal." Amelia reminded them, which was a valid point in a world of fabricated hypothesis and 'What-ifs.'

"At least we know a bit more than we did before," Garry voiced after the silence had stretched on for another moment.

The other three nodded their agreements before starting to whisper amongst themselves about Ms. Creo and various other topics that Ib had told them about. They agreed to see the tree after the concert and then the conversation flipped to what they were going to wear, though it was mainly Amelia asking Ib.

Finding the answer unsatisfactory, Amelia dragged Ib back to the dorms after lunch so that they could prepare for the concert. Garry and Luno followed as they had nothing else to do for an hour. The concert would start at six and last until nine or ten, and the boys had decided to head back at four to prepare themselves.

Amelia and Luno explained to them that the concert was actually a relatively formal event, but with some leniency. In a nutshell, they wouldn't be dressing casually. After the concert there was alway going to be a large party that the prestigious guests were not privy to know of as it was just for the students. Luno also added that the fall showcase had been pushed up so that it would be happening at the very end of September, merely weeks away, so the party was going to be bigger than previous years to accommodate for the large amount of stress that would befall bright and early Monday morning. This weekend would be the last one that wasn't going to be spent in panic or frustration.

"Ok, now out! Us girls have to look fabulous for the guests," Amelia smiled as she ushered the two boys out the door, closing it firmly behind them.

They shared a look.

"Do you think Ib will be okay in there by herself?" Garry whispered, his glance casted back in forth between Luno and the door.

Luno cracked a small smile, "I guess we'll find out at six."

* * *

Ib sighed to herself, picking at a stray sequin as she waited for Amelia to throw another dress her way. The two had raided their closets and regrouped in the wheat-haired girl's room to prepare for the coming evening. So far, Ib was rather tired of trying on dresses only to have more thrown her way. Really, she would just be fine with anything, but Amelia wouldn't let her.

"Try on this one, last one, I promise," Amelia called out before tossing another dress Ib's way.

The brunette obeyed and walked out afterwards, waiting for Amelia to begin the assessment. The girl pursed her lips and had her twirl before smiling brightly, "It's perfect! I knew that one would be the best!"

Ib gave her a slightly exasperated look, but didn't say anything as she let Amelia do her hair. It was almost shocking that the normally hyped girl could be so gentle when it came to styling hair. Ib could feel her gently yank and would move accordingly, as if the whole process were simple clockwork. It was almost enough to make Ib sleepy at how relaxing it was.

"Done!" Amelia announced giddily as she twirled the chair around for Ib to see her own reflection.

Amelia had pulled Ib's hair up into a half updo with most of her long tresses falling down her back. Her dress, an empire waist with a Queen Ann neckline, fell mid-thigh and was a deep red with layers of lace hemming in black. Amelia handed her simple red heels to bring it all together. All in all, Ib liked the way it looked. It wasn't too showy nor was it wallflower material.

"We look lovely!" Amelia smiled, her voice dipping into an English accent at the last word.

Ib agreed, assessing Amelia's blue a-line dress that fell mid-thigh, the halter top that left her upper back exposed, and her hair that was swept into a low bun with a few wavy strands framing one side of her face. Her heels were silver and wrapped around her ankles, matching her earrings and necklace.

"We do," Ib said, a smile curling her painted lips.

"Just wait till Garry gets a load of you!" Amelia teased playfully, not missing the way Ib became flustered and played with her necklace.

A few minutes later there was a knock at the door, to which Amelia hollered for whomever it was to come in. Ib looked to the door, her breath nearly catching in her throat at the sight of Luno and Garry, though mainly the latter. She would never admit it allowed, but Garry cleaned up nicely.

The lavanderette had combed his hair over to the side, still covering up his one eye, and nervously ran one gloved hand through the tresses, sometimes exposing that eye to the rest of the world. A crisp white shirt with a point collar and french cuffs, a black vest and matching pants, and polished black shoes adorned his frame and Ib couldn't stop herself from staring. In fact, her face felt rather warm and feverish, but what this meant she didn't know. Maybe it was like Amelia had told her that one time, about liking boys and what not.

Taking much effort, Ib turned to look at Luno who had on a black pinstripe suit. He looked secretive and classy with his glasses on (though this was only if the lights started to irritate his eyes during the show), and had also combed his hair into a reasonable style with a fedora that was pleasing to the eye without looking ridiculous.

"Well, don't ya'll look nice," Amelia finally said after a few silent pauses, but her voice came out rather small.

Garry smiled over at Ib, coming closer and looked rather flustered himself as he presented her his arm, "It's traditional to go in pairs."

Amelia cast a sly glance over at Luno, knowing that he had been the one to tell Garry this. It may have been true, but Amelia hadn't planned to say anything until they were almost at the school. A funny image suddenly popped into her head of Luno and Garry arm in arm if Ib refused, and she promptly had to stifle a laugh as Luno casted her a raised brow. She waved him off before everyone ushered out the door.

The walk to the school was loud as other classmates were also heading to the same place, calling out compliments and chattering about miscellaneous things. Ib caught sight of Rose and Lucy, who smiled and waved in her direction with pointed eyes at her and Garry. Ib knew that tomorrow she was going to be drilled about this. But for now she merely smiled back and waved with her free hand, listening to them promise to see her later after the concert so that they could chat a bit.

They entered the music hall and hurried to find good seats near the middle of the theatre, but only just managed to get some seats that were a bit off to the left, though still in the center all the same. They seated themselves in the rows, finding the chairs rather comfy as they waited for the concert to start.

Luno gesturing up to the balcony where all the privileged guests were to be seated for a better view of the performances, "But that's why it's brilliant. While they're milling around towards the stairs, most of the students are already heading towards the after party without being noticed."

"It is rather convenient," Garry absently agreed as he casted along side glance at Ib, only to blush when his gaze dipped too far down.

He stared hard at the stage, willing himself to look nowhere else. Luno casted him a small smirk at his internal debate, wondering why no one had ever taught him how to subtly look. However, Ib seemed far too caught up with whatever was happening near the left exit to notice. Luno followed her eyes, which led him to see something rather...strange.

The lights in the theatre were rather dim, but produced enough light that it was easy enough to see with little difficulty. So, then how could he be seeing a mass of shadows converging by the door, almost seeming like a silhouette of sorts? He blinked, but the image didn't disappear, and from next to him he could hear Amelia snapping a picture at that very spot.

"Hey, look at this," Amelia called in a whisper, making the image appear again as she tilted it for everyone to see.

On the screen was a zoomed in shot of the left exit, and right near the stage was a silhouette that they now could clearly see was shaped like a small child. The shadows were parts of her hair and clothes they could not identify, and her back was to them as if she didn't know nor care if they were watching her. Only they, who were Gallery vessels, could see her.

"This must be Ida," Garry whispered as a shiver wracked his spine at the name. A small worry spiked within him the longer he stared at the photo, nearly making him feel ill with omen.

"Yeah, you're probably right, but we can't do much right now," as Luno spoke these words the lights were turned off and the concert began.

*The first performance was a ballet that played out the story of what Ib felt to be searching, but only in the end did they find one another...though it was for but a short amount of time. The soft melody of the piano and then the soft longing in the last few minutes was what spoke out the most, wrapping up the performance as one dancer tragically died just as they were reunited. It was bittersweet and stained in chaste kisses of death, but there was a gorgeousness to it that she couldn't put her finger on.

The second and third performances were made up of singers and dancers, alternating between classical ballet or tap into modern hip hop or gymnastics that zoomed across the stage in myriads of neon painted body spray. Each performance was unique and something Ib knew that she would never see again. The amount of planning for these performances was excruciating and the attention to detail superb.

Without realizing it, the final act was upon them. Amelia squirmed in her seat as she waited for Lumi and her partner to appear for the final performance, and though Ib wanted to tell her to stop, she could not hinder her own curiosity at what was the big deal about this act. She had no doubt that Lumi was talented, but how much so? Luno had mentioned that when Lumi and this Neah boy had paired up for the last concert they obtained millions from sponsors, but would this year be the same?

The heavy drapes were finally pulled back, revealing a white piano a bit off to the audience's left. The backdrop was almost aquatic and shimmered like the ocean in the sun, but what was most eye catching was the strange chair like structure in the center of the stage. This chair was large and seemed to be hooked up with wires and things Ib could only classify as robot syfy. Seated in that white glistening chair was none other than Lumi herself, her head bowed, and hands on the arm rests.

Her dress was a lovely shade of opalescent white that fluctuated between powder blue, light lavender, and almost a faint pink. It was strapless, falling in ruffled layers to just past her knees with the train longer, and the back dipped low to allow what looked like two large mechanical attachments to attach to the valley between her shoulders, nearly looking wing like. Her shoes were simple open-toed heels with silvery and gold bangles. Her fair hair was messily unkempt, but somehow fit the scene.

Neah started to play and slowly Lumi raised her head bit to start singing:

*"All alone in this empty deserted place

Both your hands, I no longer feel

In the end my regret is to take the blame

Consequence of my fallen ideal

Synthesia; the colorful wind escapes me

Songs of green, I can no longer hear

Though you're watching over me so silently

I KNOW THAT YOU ARE THERE,

Your voice whispers my name

My silent call, falls so faint

The glass muting the soundwaves

Your smile, I crave

Your direction 2 steps I take quietly,

You lay motionless; you were asleep

Paralyzed, realized, I'm so cowardly,

I despise myself for being so weak

Lights appear like the wind they've escaped my grasp,

Just illusion, or the real thing

Though this silence is impossible to surpass

My song for you, I'm singing

Your voice whispers my name

My silent call, falls so faint

The still past, it will not change

Time just won't slow down

Dispose of this encasing

Look into my eyes please

I only wish to sing

I beg, set me free

Your voice whispers my name

My silent call, falls so faint

The glass muting the sound waves

Your smile, I crave

Your smile, I crave…"

Ib hadn't noticed her own tears nor the others' as her vermilion eyes remained fixated on the performance, unable to do anything but listen and take it in. For some reason, the song struck a nerve within her very being and she felt as if she had once been the one to sing that song to someone. However, only the words felt familiar...as if she had acted and felt that way before. Ib's gaze drifted over to Garry when the song ended.

Garry was already staring at her when she looked over at him and a silence passed over them, their gazes never waving even as the whole auditorium rose to their feet to applaud and cheer. Blue and red never left the other as they searched for the meaning as to why this all struck cords within them. For Ib it was loss and haunted fear yet understanding for Garry, but it was only a sickening twist of a big 'what if' that clung to them. Still, they could not shake the sudden need to be next to each other, almost as if they would disappear if their eyes glanced away from one another.

"Ready for the after party?" Amelia interjected, missing the sudden air between the two.

Luno, however, did not and glanced between the lavenderette and brunette with a hidden curiosity at the sudden change in their eyes. If he didn't know any better, he would have marked it as attraction, but this look was so much more. It was something that he couldn't begin to explain or understand.

"We should drop by to see Lumi before we depart; she usually is swamped with guests to entertain." Luno finally proposed, not missing a beat as he talked over the throng of people.

Garry and Ib finally came out of their trance and abashedly agreed, still looking at one another when they thought the other wasn't looking away. Luno would have raised a brow at the sudden scarlett of Garry's cheeks, but already knew that the lavenderette was coming around to realize him own feelings, if only a smidge.

They filed out of the theatre and followed the traffic down, only breaking off to enter the stage side doors. Performers, carts, brooms, and equipment were dodged as they skirted around to the backroom to find Luno's twin sister. However, the closer they grew to their destination the worse Ib was starting to feel. Her eyes shifted, trying to pinpoint the source of her sudden ailment, which came in the form of something she hadn't expected.

They entered the dressing room where Lumi and Amelia instantly started chattering away, dragging Luno into the conversation with some remark or another as the other two greeted Neah; he was no older than Garry, had messy dark hair, yellow eyes, and a playful but tactful way of speaking. He shook his gloved hands with theirs, speaking about the concert and other minor topics of conversation.

It wasn't hard to see that he had a thing for Lumi with the way his eyes would drift back to her form no matter where they were situated inside the room or the small smile that would play on his face when she spoke with him, and he effortlessly bantered back. Ib glanced over at Luno whose eye rolling and fake gagging made her almost laugh, only to notice something strange placed on the vanity beyond him.

The pit in her stomach widened, followed by aggravating dread as she slowly made her way over to the bouquet. The others continued on with conversation, but they had noticed her sudden solace. They did not bring attention to it as they kept Neah and Lumi distracted, trusting Ib to tell them what was up later.

Ib gingerly touched the plastic wrapping of the rose bouquet as every nerve and impulse screamed at her to get as far away as possible from it, burn it, and throw it out. The gentle petals were smooth black in texture, but the thorns were sharpened and the stems angrily charged with specks of once healthy green stems. The bouquet was white and tied with a dark bow, but it was a single rose that stood out among the many; it was dark, twisted, and the petals withering away as they shrunk up bitterly.

"Hey, what are you doing over there, Ib?" Lumi called out.

Ib placed the flowers in the trashcan before turning around to face them, "Nothing, sorry."

"That's alright, but I'm afraid we have to get going," Lumi gestured to Neah and herself, "Hafta go greet those sponsors and what-not, but maybe we'll catch you at the after party when we finally get there!"

"Okay, but let's get some pictures before we go," Amelia pleaded as she took out a camera from her small purse. She arranged everyone by the door where the lighting was best and pushed people together. Garry and Neah stood in the center back with Ib and Lumi slightly turned in towards them, while Luno stood in the front center next to his sister as he waited for Amelia to start the timer and hurry to get in the photo.

A series of photos were taken, the order jumbled as they attempted different expressions and scenes that mostly ended up with someone laughing or pulling a stunt, such as the one where Luno had 'accidentally' pushed Ib so that Garry caught her before she fell, which was retaliated by Luno being pushed into Amelia's arms. Lumi and Neah also had some of their own, and one even ended up with them doing improve poses.

Amelia did karate moves, Ib decided to blow a kiss at the camera with a wink (at Amelia and Lumi's suggestion, Luno's amusement, and Garry's blushing) while Lumi struck a sideways disco pose with a leg half in the air. The boys were inbetween with Garry biting his glove in an attempt to be sexy (put up to it) by Ib, Luno tipping his fedora and nearly falling into his sister's back, and Neah had opted to stick bunny ears on Amelia and Ib.

Looking through the photos, they laughed and made faces at certain ones. A good majority were just sudden improve and scrambling to pick a pose, while the minority were respectable and normal photos with them all. As they were browsing the photos, Ib spotted something  _off_ about one of them, but opted not to bring attention to it for now.

"Okay, seriously, we need to get out of here," Lumi laughed as she ushered them out.

The four departed and idly made their way out of the building, heading towards the large garden where the after party would be held. Ib noticed that the party did not extend far enough to reach the decrepit maze, instead it was covered up with a pavilion and a vibrant garden that kept most students from heading off into the old garden hidden further back among the tall hedges.

As they waited in line, chattering with various other acquaintances, Ib requested to view the photos again. Amelia handed over the camera before returning back to Liam and someone else she knew from one of her classes. Ib carefully examined each picture, Garry looking over her shoulder in curiosity at what Ib was looking for. He wished he hadn't. Ib had just reached the middle of the photos when they saw a figure outside the door, nearly covered up by their own bodies, but one detail was perfectly clear: Soaru.

The Japanese teen had been walking passed the room, holding some sort of prop from the show, but trailing behind him was a girl, which would have been normal or even plausible if it wasn't for one small detail: her body was faded and her feet mere mist.

Garry's sharp intake of air drew Amelia and Luno out of their conversation and they crowded around the camera, intent on seeing what was wrong. Luno's jaw set as he regarded the meaning behind the photo while Amelia was silent, emotions battling for dominance over her face. Ib understood their reactions, hers being nearly the same. Soaru had been their friend until he stuck to Dmitri, but now he could be in trouble because of them.

Ms. Creo had warned Ib that this Ida child could lash out at those close to them. Was this the case? Counting herself, there are eight other vessels and who's to say Soaru isn't one of them? Yet, the photo identifies that he didn't know he was being followed. This girl was even touching him, but his face remained neutral to the whole situation. Regardless, Soaru was in potential critical danger and it was up to them to help him, but how? Things were still sore between all of them and simply walking up to him and telling him that there's a painted spectator following him around could be dangerous and life threatening, and explaining that a parallel world known as The Gallery exists obviously isn't going to go over very well either.

"We'll observe the situation for now," Garry spoke up after a few tense moments of silence. "This may just be a coincidence for all we know."

Luno slowly nodded, "Garry's right, and even if this was the real deal we can't simply just jump into the situation. We have to think about this a little more and research; we have a picture of this painting-" He glanced at Amelia, "Could you work on enlarging this photo tomorrow so that we can see her clearly?"

She nodded, "No problem."

The air was now tense with suppressed emotions as the dinner line continued on and eventually ended. The four walked out into the garden, weaving through the makeshift dance floor and arriving at an empty table towards the end of the garden that was far enough away that the bass wasn't vibrating in their ears, but close enough to still mingle and appear social.

The tension lessened as they fell into the familiar rhythm of conversation that centered around the performances, attire, and then settled into something almost intimate as they discussed aspects of their home lives, censoring what they did not want known. They were saved by Ib's topic of horror, drama, and syfy movies that she often ended up watching, along with her mother's inability to cook eggs.

"I'm not a big fan of horror movies," Amelia sheepishly admitted. "I enjoy almost every other type though."

"Oh, why not? It's just about all fake," Luno pointed out, smirking as Amelia squirmed in her seat as she recounted the first horror movie she had ever seen that had scarred her.

Garry nervously fidgeted, also admitting that while he could tolerate horror movies, he hated jump scares. "No matter how many times I've seen the movie, the jump scares always get me."

"A man who admits it!" Amelia cried dramatically, and then the two submerged themselves in bonding over their distaste for jump scares.

Ib and Luno were left to bond over their inclination towards horror and syfy movies, even debating characters and the like.

It wasn't more than an hour later that they grew restless with remaining seated and decided to check out this strange ash tree. They excused themselves from other friends who had come over for light conversation before heading out to the old garden. Ib led them through, taking nearly two wrong turns in all before finding the center of the maze.

"Oh man, talking about horror movies and jump scares has made me paranoid. I'm just waiting for Sadako or Jason to suddenly appear," Amelia nervously twittered as she cast an apprehensive look around the perimeter. Luno chuckled at her admission, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, reassuring her that those two characters would probably be running from her rather than wanting to meet her. In retort, Amelia elbowed him before hurrying after Ib and Garry who were already in front of the tree.

In the starlit night, the ash tree looked nearly abysmal and further twisted than it had earlier. The bark appeared darker, and while bathed in moonlight it had an ethereal appeal to it that drew them in. As Ib and Ms. Creo had done earlier, the three touched the tree with their palms, taken aback with how they could feel its pulse.

"Wow, so this place really reflects the core?" Amelia asked aloud in awe, but then a frown etched itself onto her face, "But it's also dying, which is why we can probably feel its pulse, huh?"

"What?" Garry inquired.

"Well, Ms. Creo told Ib that the core is wilting, which is symbolized by this tree's gnarly appearance, right?"

"Yeah," Garry agreed slowly.

"But if it's wilting, then the pulse we feel should be faint. But it's not, so maybe this means that to conserve energy only the outside is rotting at this time." Amelia summarized, unsure of her own idea by the end.

"That's really perceptive, Amelia." Garry complimented, not noticing the blush on Amelia's face at being praised.

"So, now the question is what can we do?" Luno spoke up after a moment.

They gave pause, unsure.

"Let's keep investigating for now. I'll speak with Ms. Creo tomorrow about it," Ib replied.

The others agreed, agreeing to work on their own contributions, which included the girl in the picture, before heading back to the party to blend back in. For the rest of the night they rotated between groups, conversing with themselves, dancing, munching on food, and having a good time. Even Ib found herself having fun with mindless chatter, Amelia pushing her and Garry to dance, and (most surprisingly) being approached by classmates she hadn't known before. It was nerve wracking, yet exciting all at the same time.

Ib knew herself to be rather reserved with a bit of a sarcastic streak, but this whole meeting new people thing was part of the reason she had chosen to attend the academy. Still, she often found herself gravitating back towards Garry after a certain amount of time, just checking to make sure he was still there. He always returned her gazes, giving reassuring smiles if he didn't approach, also seeming to have the same need to check on her as she did him.

At the very end of the night, after walking back with everyone and settling into her bed, Ib had suddenly gotten the urge to sketch. Nearly two or three hours later she fell asleep, the pencil drawing displaying a young girl with one eye in the middle of her face, the title reading  _Cycloptic Smile_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Inspired by, "I'll Find You"-Skyvoice (tribute to Chaoticmonki)
> 
> *Lumi's song is based off Miku-tan's cover of "Sleeping Beauty" only in piano version like Shiroko's Japanese dub. (Chosen mainly due to its relevance (double meaning!) and because Miku-tan's voice is amazing! I wish she would do a piano version...).


	18. Chapter 18

> "Great things are done by a series of small things brought together."
> 
> -Vincent Van Gogh
> 
>  

Once upon a dream, there was a little star who lived all alone in deep cobalt black. All the other stars were bright and vibrant, overlooking what the littlest deemed important. Ignorance was a virtue, for when that littlest star grew bigger and bigger and more vibrant, the majestic life once dreamed was a thorny path of dysfunctional life only redeemed by decadence, never ascension for the highest acme is brief for such a tiny star.

But, what is done in the depths will arise the phoenix or reaper, maybe a nullified existence altogether.

* * *

Ib awoke to the sound of whispering from next door. She groaned and pulled her pillow over her head, praying for it to stop before she was awake enough to investigate. It was in vain. The noises only escalated into a din that tormented her ears while she staggered out of bed tiredly and went next door. The noise was so loud that she was physically trying to block it out with her palms, but it was only effective at muffling it to a small extent.

She gritted her teeth and gripped the knob firmly. The door seemed to jump out of her hand and then opened widely. Suddenly a gale whipped around the entrance, drowning out most of the words, but Ib could still hear that one sentence clear as day swirl inside her skull. She braced herself and reached for the knob, trying to close the door.

_Find us!_

Ib finally found the knob again and swiftly fought to close the door as the command stabbed at her brain like sharpened a fork. Door closed, she heavily leaned against the opposing wall and slid to the floor, questioning herself for even bothering to open it in the first place. She knew it was dangerous, but Ib also knew that these voices sounded desperate for someone to listen to them, and she couldn't ignore them. They were probably the voices of all the forgotten and it pained her that there were so many.

_Find us._

Could they be talking about their paintings? Ib sighed inwardly, suddenly tired with the sudden development, but willing to go on. She was far too entrenched to give up nor did she even want to. Ib didn't consider herself a saint or a saviour, but she knew that she had to persevere and finish this. Ms. Creo had mentioned that Ib herself had affected an Exhibit which has, apparently, left lasting impressions on the Gallery. This, a portion of it or so, was partly her fault and it was all too personal. In fact, Ib never entertained the idea of quitting. Breaks were tolerable, but not quitting something that she felt was immensely important.

She stood up from the floor and went back to her room, noting her sketchbook was open. She walked over and stared at the drawing, feeling weary and dread blossom within her chest at the vague familiarity of the drawing. This was not her style, it was not something she would draw, and it certainly could only be something from the Gallery. ' _Cycloptic smile...I should ask Ms. Creo about this. The others need to know also, this may be a clue.'_ '

Ib would be seeing the others at dinner and opted to tell them then. She glanced at the clock and noted that she was supposed to meet Lucy and Rose upstairs in fifteen minutes. Ib smiled a bit to herself, realizing that she had had a lot of meetings lately with her friends. Never before had she been so busy with other people. It was a good feeling, though it was also rather exhausting.

Ib cleaned up her room and headed upstairs to Lucy's, knocked politely and waited. From inside she could hear Lucy drop something and it was thirty seconds later before she finally opened the door. "Hey, Ib, I wasn't expecting you so early."

"I'm sorry," Ib replied, noticing the defaced muffins on the counter had probably been the things her blonde companion had dropped in surprise.

"No, no, don't worry about it! They're still edible and I have plenty more. I made a lot in culinary class." Lucy replied, having followed Ib's line of sight, "Besides, I have plenty of other snacks."

Ib gave her a small smile, reminded of Amelia's peculiar ability to pull food out of seemingly nowhere. She followed Lucy inside and helped set out bowls while chatting-mainly Lucy-about a few series while waiting for Rose to show up, which wasn't for another fifteen minutes.

"Sorry, sorry, I was super busy and had to run back to school," Rose apologized haggardly when she did make her appearance. Lucy let her in without question and ushered the two to sit down while she went into the kitchen to grab drinks.

Rose and Ib sat comfortably on Lucy's loveseat, subconsciously making room for their blonde friend to sit in the middle for ultimate snackage reach. Lucy handed them drinks and was just bringing out the real food when Rose waggled her eyebrows at Ib, "So, you and Garry, huh?"

Ib, who had been taking a sip, nearly spit out her drink as Amelia's crash course on boys flooded back into her head. She managed to swallow the offending liquid down, her throat hurting as she did so, "Excuse me?"

Lucy laughed and sat down in-between them, "Come on, Ib. It's really obvious that you like him, and I'm positive he reciprocates the feeling!"

Ib stared at them blankly.

"Well, I'm sure you feel different around him, like happy or self-conscious..." Rose started before Lucy cut her off, "And you gravitate towards each other without meaning to and you stare at him a lot and sometimes you wonder about kissing him!"

Ib was starting to resemble her eye colour as she couldn't school her features with their constant barrage, "You all sound like Amelia..."

Lucy laughed, Rose smirking, "That means it's so obvious that even Amelia has picked up on it."

Ib frowned, unsure of what Rose was trying to imply about Amelia, which she said as much.

Rose looked sheepish, "No, no, it's just Amelia is a little slow when it comes to romance. I don't think she can even tell that a certain  _someone_  likes her."

"Hey, no changing topics! We're going to get Ib to admit she likes Garry!" Lucy interjected.

"That is today's ultimate objective," Rose continued, "And rating Jorge's and Lucinda's actors."

"Wonderful goals," Lucy then turned to Ib with an almost gossip look about her. Ib was familiar with the look, though normally it involved someone talking about her. "I just so happen to be in Garry's culinary class, and I've observed that he seems rather popular with quite a few of the ladies. One of which is someone in our painting class."

Ib, for reasons unknown to her, found herself engrossed in what Lucy was saying, even becoming impatient when she paused for dramatic effect.

"You remember Sherry, right? She stepped on your painting and has the pink streaks in her hair?" Ib nodded, prompting Lucy to continue, "Well, she's alright in culinary, but when Garry transferred in she started pretending to have more problems so that she could ask him for help. I heard her invite him to the concert last class, but he declined saying he was already going with someone else."

"She was really mad about it and I really wanted to warn you, but Sherry saw you and Garry last night before I could." Lucy looked troubled and Ib awkwardly reached out to hold her hand. "Thanks, Ib, but I really should warn you. Sherry can get rather nasty."

"Did she do something to you?" Ib asked carefully. Rose frowned sadly as Lucy nodded, "Yeah, last year she had her eyes on my friend, Zephyr, and because I was close to him I was deemed a threat. End of story, we had a fight and are no longer friends."

Ib felt anger bubble up within her at how defeated Lucy appeared. She also felt another emotion overcome her when she thought of the same girl hanging on Garry like an unwanted leech. Ib paused in her thoughts, surprised by her own bitterness in regards to a girl that she was never properly introduced to. She couldn't tell if these sudden emotions were wrong or right, but they felt justified to her in a way that made sense, but also didn't. However, the very thought of Garry going, as Amelia said, 'out' with a girl like that made her want to break something.

Ib paused, "I...think you're right. I'm sorry, Lucy."

The two casted her pensive looks, not sure what the brunette was implying.

"When you were talking all I could think about was this Sherry hanging onto him and what she's done to you...I-I think I'm really angry. I don't want her anywhere near him and it almost hurts to think that she might take him away." Ib admitted, unsure of the words coming out of her mouth. She had only described her feelings to Amelia in terms of Garry, and they confided in each other about most things. To tell these two that she may just actually have feelings towards the lavanderette instead of the ambiguous above-friends feeling was almost like betraying Amelia, but she resolved to tell her later of her recent development.

Now, what to do about this affection?

Lucy squealed, clapping her hands and girling out as she shouted "I knew it!" multiple times. Rose smiled and laughed at Lucy's antics, congratulating Ib on finally realizing it. "God, there's nothing better than love gossip!" Lucy admitted, Rose agreeing with her. "I normally hate any type of gossip, with minor case-by-case exceptions, but I can't stop listening when people talk about love, feelings, and boys!"

"Amen," Rose finalized.

With the mood now cheery, the three girls turned on the television and proceeded to watch seven episodes of a book-turned-series with all the talking, shushing, commenting, and laughter that girls are capable of when it comes to their favourite show. Ib found herself joining the two in their banter and conversations. Some of the references went right over her head, but she was having fun all the same.

It was an hour before dinner that Ib bid them goodbye, promising to see them at the festival and fill them in on Monday during third period. Ib quietly walked to the cafeteria, lost in thought on how she was going to tell Amelia about her predicament and if she should tell Garry. Annoyingly, her face started to get warm at the thought.

"Do you have a fever, Ib? Your face is red," Ib blanched as Amelia suddenly appeared and compared forehead temperatures with her palms pensively.

"I-I have to tell you something," Ib blurted out, piquing Amelia's interest. Ib explained what had happened at the concert and the conversation she had with Rose and Lucy earlier, including her own admission of interest in Garry. Amelia listened thoroughly, nodding in certain places before watching Ib with lit eyes. She, much like Lucy, squealed but also hugged Ib while jumping up and down in excitement.

"I knew it! I knew it! You guys are so adorbs!" Amelia gushed, "When are you going to tell him?"

"I don't know if I should," Amelia's smile died a bloody death upon hearing those words.

"What, why?"

"Well, we are in the middle of trying to save Kate and the other forgotten," Ib trailed off, letting her words hang heavily in the air at the unspoken weight of the whole situation.

"Yea, I see your point." Amelia begrudgingly admitted, "but maybe telling him now will be better than later."

"But if the situation arose where we were in danger, I wouldn't want his judgment clouded with unneeded thoughts."

"Ib, you're way too practical. Live a little, this may be the one chance that you have. You don't want to regret it." Amelia remarked rather sadly, and Ib knew exactly what Amelia was regretting, but chose not to comment on the question of if Garry also held feelings for her; Amelia was at a fragile point as it was.

Ib changed the topic to food and they continued on their way to the cafeteria line and then the table, greeting Luno and Garry whom were already waiting for them. The mood was kept casual until they were finished, the trays thrown away, and then it was all business.

Amelia pulled out a large envelope from her bag, flipping open the top and laid it down on the table for them to see. "I managed to magnify the pictures, but the two aren't identical. The one we saw by the stage is probably this Ida person and the other is just plain weird."

"It gets worse," Ib replied as she took out her sketchbook, flipped to the correct page, and placed it on the table for them to see. "I'm pretty sure this is the name of whatever is stalking...him."

They nodded, recognizing that Soaru's name would remain anonymous just incase anyone was eavesdropping.

"Cycloptic Smile, where have I heard that before?"Garry asked rhetorically, something nagging at him from the back of his mind.

"I feel as if I too should remember this painting, but the feeling is very faint." Ib also voiced, creating a link in Luno's mind.

"Well, Ms. Creo said as much that you both attended the same Exhibit, so maybe you saw this painting there. Anyway, with a name we now have something to go on. I can probably try to see if the library has any records of the painting." Luno suggested, enjoying the thought that they could finally be closer to an answer.

Luno had been friends with Soaru since he entered the academy nearly two years ago. The young Asian man had been nervous, reserved, and seemed to be holding a great weight on his shoulders. He didn't talk about it, but it was obvious to Luno who also felt a great responsibility. He hadn't gone out on a whim to befriend him or anything, but he did present the opportunities for interaction and when they did interact they both were comforted by the others own issues with whatever it was they were holding in.

Luno did care for Soaru, he was his friend, which is why he was so bothered by the way Soaru took to Dmitri's side. In regards to what had happened, he could understand if Soaru was displeased with the sudden change in dynamic and distance, but to go to the extent that he would let Dmitri say what he did about Amelia wasn't like him at all. If what Ms. Creo had told Ib was true, then maybe Dmitri wasn't the only one affected by Ida's manipulation.

Gillian and Dmitri were different matters. Soaru he could forgive in time, but those two had really dug themselves a deep hole. He wasn't inclined to forgive them, though he had been good friends with Dmitri and they often would help each other with projects even though they were taking different classes. Soaru had introduced them and they had much in common, so the relationship had been friendly and equal. Dmitri had also been the one to introduce Gillian to everyone in the very beginning when he had found her walking around the hallway, lost and new. Lumi and her got along well, though rocky at first with Gillian's strange manners and his sister's own short temper that she had been trying to improve. Gillian was good for his sister, often going beyond his sister's small patience and making her endure it, which vastly improved it in a short span of time.

Amelia had arrived months after Soaru, energetic and also very new. She had happened to have a photoshop class with Gillian for half a semester, but it was Liam who had made her known to them when she accidentally walked into the men's room. Lumi took to her enthusiasm and eccentric disposition instantly, often talking about this and that with her because Amelia held some of the same interests. For instance, they both enjoyed dance, action movies, and sucked at cooking. Honestly, he hadn't liked Amelia at first, but his opinion had changed the more she interacted with them. She was genuinely loud, often self-conscious, and always tried to cheer anyone up if she could. Amelia also was very serious about photography, which amazed him as she was always on the put a camera in her hands and she was like a different person.

Perhaps this dual personality was what drew others to her. He could see why Dmitri teased her, why Gillian often spoke freely to her about her strange fixations, why Soaru-though often perplexed-knew she was reliable and someone he could trust, why Lumi gravitated towards her honesty, why Garry trusted her, and why Ib was her best friend. That's why he couldn't forgive Gillian and Dmitri for what they did, even if it was spurned by some crazy child painting. They had betrayed their friendship and pinned everything on Ib and Garry.

It was understandable that Ib and Garry were unknowing catalysts, but something was going to give at some point. Ib and Garry just happened to be convenient. They were new and had a strange air about them that sucked all of them in while also keeping them at a distance. It had been Luno's and Amelia's choice to follow them, thus getting involved and they developed the same air that Garry and Ib possessed. In reality, Luno was rather content with this. Yes, he had been terrified of dying and the whole monster thing, but dying with Amelia and then seeing the bonds he'd developed with Ib and Garry in such a small amount of time had been one of his best memories.

He also knew that it was only natural that they all had grown closer due to the life-or-death situations. It's a well known adage, afterall. Besides, it was finally nice to know that all the strange feelings he'd been having while attending the school weren't just fabrications or stress. Things were happening, serious things that affected him, and he wasn't just going to sit down and let it happen.

"Oh,I almost forgot," Luno suddenly spoke, breaking from his internal monologue. "I looked into Acela and found a pretty good lead. The hospital she's currently at is the only one in the city and I can probably get two of us in to see her with a little bit of lying."

"Ohhh, we got a bad ass over here." Amelia dawled, but was impressed with his quick results all the same.

"That reminds me, I went back to her room this morning," Ib said, describing the horrible din and the new command from the distorted voices she'd heard.

"Find us...do they mean the paintings they were probably turned in to or...their bodies?" Garry nervously asked, a shiver going through him at the prospect of happening upon a decaying body.

"It's most likely the former. They don't have bodies anymore, remember? Acela and Kate are apparently different, but these guys have been gone a long time, right?" Amelia inquired. If those construction workers all those decades ago had also gone missing, then there is no doubt that they had long since been absorbed by the core.

"That's a...valid point," Garry nervously agreed, having forgot that fact.

"We should keep an eye out then, but the problem is that their paintings may be so ancient that we won't be able to discern them from the regular paintings," Amelia pointed out, "If we can find the artist and somehow link 'em to most of the other paintings we saw then maybe we can discern which ones are the missing."

"The artist is a male," Garry stated, "Mary called him her father and used the pronoun 'he' multiple times, so we're looking for a male most likely above twenty and...I think his name begins with a G."

Luno looked at him, surprised, "Did you finally remember something?"

Garry shook his head, "No, but I did happen across some badly burned books when I was on my own. It was like a collection of his paintings and it was written after he died because I'm sure it said that one of his works was found in his home and his name began with a G, but the rest was unreadable. I have a feeling it's right, but I might be wrong..."

"No, it helps. I can narrow it down now instead of having to look at every artist from A-Z. I'll start with G and if you all could make a list of the paintings you remember then I can try to match them up. Anything is fine, the title or a description." Luno took out a piece of paper and handed it to Amelia to pass around after she was done writing.

"Now, the most important thing at the moment is  _him_ ," Luno continued, talking about Soaru, "He is either in danger or it was just a one time thing, but we need evidence."

They all casted a glance towards the old table, noting that Soaru had yet to arrive. Amelia leaned closer to whisper, "Well, it would be rather obvious 'cause she would be trailing him, right? As vessels, we can see Gallery occupants on this level, or so it goes."

"Yes, but we might be being monitored by Ida to see how we react," Luno hypothesized. Garry sighed, the complexity and uncertainty of the situation starting to stress him out.

Ib looked towards the lavenderette and gave him a reassuring smile, "I wouldn't worry, we can always ask Amelia to take a picture just in case."

"That's right! You can count on me!" Amelia took out a portable camera, but suddenly her cheerful expression was covered by the camera and she was pointing beyond them. They slightly turned to see what was going on, but only felt dread blossom within their chests at the sight of the spectator now fully grasping Soaru's arm. He didn't seem to notice her in the least, but they could make out something twisted in her single eye that chilled them in fear for Soaru's life.

"What should we do?" Amelia frantically whispered, the camera now shaking slightly in her hands when she took it away from her eye. "I don't like this one bit, but I know we just can't jump him and expect him to listen to us."

"We have to try anyway," Garry was the one to say. "I don't want to put any one out, but I don't know him all that well. If you or Amelia were to say something, there's a higher chance of him listening to you."

There was a pregnant pause.

"I'll go," Luno finally decided as he stood up.

The three watched him apprehensively as he approached Soaru, effortlessly ignoring the clinging painting, and deafly tracing their conversation visually. They all felt rather tense as Luno was over there for nearly seven whole minutes, simply talking, and it seemed Soaru was listening as Luno had sat down next to him around the fourth minute. It was ten minutes later that Luno came back over, ignoring the look Dmitri sent him upon his arrival.

"How'd it go?" Garry asked, and Luno sighed.

"I simply explained that he could very well be in trouble and that he should be careful not to be alone for any extended periods of time. He invited me to sit and asked about what was really going on."

"Did ya tell him?" Amelia asked hesitantly.

Luno scoffed, "Of course not."

"What did you tell him then, he looked pretty worried about something." Garry inquired, to which Luno kept his mouth shut.

"He said something hurtful," Ib stated. "I can read lip."

She kept silent as Luno squirmed, but finally gave him a nod, assuring him she had no intention of revealing what he said. In fact, she agreed with what he said to him. Soaru had deserved it and he needed to know he was wrong and that he had hurt all of them. The ball was in his court, but, regardless of teams, they were going to help get rid of  _Cycloptic Smile_ before it could harm him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As of now, this is caught up with what I have on Fanfiction.net


	19. Chapter 19

 

> "The reason that art (writing, engaging, and all of it) is valuable is precisely why I can't tell you how to do it. If there were a map, there'd be no art, because art is the act of navigating without a map."
> 
> ~Seth Godin
> 
>  

Discombobulating misinterpretations of mirthful misery juxtaposing webs of intricate lies with lace veils of truthful wedges. All in wrapped within the folds, a deceit or truth more questionable than the line that separates them. Where do they lead, who is the liar, who is to be followed?

Once, there was black and white, a lovely monochrome lie. It kept order and stability for the brainless, but the course of life is full of indecisiveness and in-betweens, where strict policy is outdated. Gray scale, the third party of in-betweens, was created, as nothing is black nor white.

For everything is a mere dream of make-believe and inevitability.

* * *

Ms. Creo walked down the corridor with purpose; hunting for the anomaly that she knew was present and one red-eyed teenager who she needed to speak with. The gray-haired woman had spent the entirety of her morning listening to students' worries about the festival, dates, and some oddball love-triangles that even extended to pentagons at two separate points. This was why Ms. Creo loved newer students; their worries were primarily about not knowing that kimonos would be needed for the festival, which was easily remedied as the fashion department usually had some older ones from previous years.

Still, it was quite the scene to have nearly ten complaining students in her office before eight. She made a mental note to speak with the principle about including this detail in the acceptance letters, then made a left turn and exited the building.

Various students greeted her with smiles or waves, some even called out and asked how her day had been. Ms. Creo felt her mouth twitch almost into a smile when this happened before answering and then continuing on her way to the female dormitory. A few girls already in kimonos passed her by and the woman held back a scoff. She had nothing against the attire, but the festival wasn't Japanese. The town had been experiencing financial difficulties and a young Japanese entrepreneur gave them a second chance decades ago, and to thank him the town adopted kimonos for the festival.

Ms. Creo was still conflicted as to whether reviving the town was a good or bad thing.

She arrived at the dormitory and wasn't too surprised to see Amelia and Ib heading her way. "Jones, Ms. Ib," She called, catching their attention, "A word, outside, please."

The two girls followed her into the forest patiently, though Ms. Creo could tell the silence was making Amelia nervous. The wheat-haired girl started to fidget with her hair and wring her hands together while looking around. Ib didn't try to stop her, also seemingly unsure.

"Do you girls know the legend of Nivis Alba?" Ms. Creo finally asked, but did not pause in her stroll.

"A little bit," Amelia stated once Ib had shook her head. "I remember that it was about some girl and that she became Nivis Alba to save...her father, I think?"

Ms. Creo made a noise of approval before turning around to face them, "It's quite peculiar how what everyone believes to be a  _legend_ holds the greatest truth."

"There once was a girl, young and full of life, named Vita. She was the daughter of a painter and of an upper class woman. Her mother died from an illness when she was young, and her father was completely taken with art that could make him eternal. His obsession brought him to death's door with the whole town against him, but Vita still loved him. She made it her mission to bring him peace and eternal life, and ended up becoming his tether. Vita is said to forever be stuck, frozen in time, so that her father may continue to live. However, that is the kid version."

Ms. Creo turned back around and began to walk again, leaving the two girls to follow after her. "The real version is longer and more complex, perhaps exaggerated in some areas, but makes all the difference. Vita is still the child of a painter obsessed with immortality and a mother who dies, but in this version her father erases existences. He, so overcome with the desire to live, had what is both a gift and a curse: if he painted a real person then the original would cease to exist, but their existence had to go somewhere. He did not yet have the power to create worlds, so he instilled each existence into his daughter."

"Vita had no idea that this was going on, and wouldn't for a long period of time. Her father tried to keep his art abstract in order not to harm anyone, but it didn't stop his works from coming to life on their own. They were all benevolent at first, but slowly changed. This put him at odds with the village and when a harsh famine fell upon them, they were slow to spare him any rations. Vita's father had created a friend for her so that she wouldn't be completely isolated, a friend that spent time with her and played games, but it was all rather hollow and boring as the painting never disagreed with her. Vita longed for a human friend, which is where Alice comes in. Their families were not entirely strangers and reached out to help one another. Skipping the boring parts, Vita's father became ill and begged Vita to stop his death. She agreed and asked him to use his ability to create a legend that would become a reality."

Ms. Creo arrived at the ash tree and tenderly touched the warped bark, "That legend did become a reality, and Vita was the main character. Her life was forfeited in order to chain her father's existence to the world, her friend Alice died to protect her, and there were eleven others who made it possible. The friend her father had created betrayed them and warped the legend, but Vita still chose to sacrifice herself to fulfill her father's selfish wish. Do you know how this relates?"

Ib and Amelia stayed silent.

"Ida betrayed them, Vita created the Gallery and Exhibits in order to keep her father alive, and revival is the only thing that will put them to rest. Mary told you about vessels, but what she doesn't know is that these vessels are commonly referred to as Alices. You both are Alices, a part of a whole. A real vessel is a candidate to be sacrificed to become Nivis Alba."

"What does that mean, to become Nivis Alba?" Amelia asked nervously, not entirely sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"Vita gave up her body to become Nivis Alba, but to reawaken her there must be a sacrifice, which will do the same thing as Vita, but the result will be the reawakening. Vita is still active, but limited in what she can do, many years ago she did something drastic so that her plea would be answered, and then she sent me. I am her creation, a sign of her containment and wish to be free."

"Then why did she grant her father's wish in the first place?" Ib asked pointedly.

"The story that was to be written was to be one where her father would recover from his illness, but Ida somehow got a hold of it and changed it without meaning to. The very definition of Nivis Alba was once an ideal fabricated world that would house the soul of Vita's father through his art, but this was altered by Ida who thought that Nivis Alba would mean the death of her. Long story short, Vita allowed herself to become the Gallery in order to not only save her father's fragmented soul, but also the other Alices. Since the very beginning Vita's been reaching out for help to right the wrong that Ida caused." Ms. Creo replied, stepping away from the ash tree and turning to face the two.

"The festival in town is to honour her legend, but they have much of it wrong," Ms. Creo frowned, "They celebrate the thought that Vita saved all of them, when she only meant to save her father and then Alice. She succeeded in saving her father, but Alice is still a mystery. She died within the story, ultimately erasing her existence from this plane, but what became of her soul?"

"That's a rhetorical question, right?" Amelia blurted out, causing Ms. Creo to actually smile and Ib to hide a small laugh.

"It's something to keep in mind, Ms. Jones."

Amelia squirmed in place, "Please, call me Amelia. Ms. Jones it way too formal and weird. Besides, you just told us that the Gallery is linked to this town and that means this plea Vita's been throwing out has been around awhile."

Amelia froze then, the gears turning, "Wait, does this mean we were wrong when we hypothesized that the Gallery was dragging people in to sustain Nivis Alba?"

"Yes, but you need to delve deeper for the answer." Ms. Creo mysteriously concluded.

"Aw man, this sucks!" Amelia exclaimed, kicking the ground with her foot once in irritation. Her frustration, however, slowly evaporated with the reminder that the festival was that night and that more pieces were starting to come together.

"Ms. Creo, you're pretty awesome," Amelia suddenly blurted out whilst bouncing on the balls on her feet. "I know you were making us all forget those other kids who went missing in the Gallery, but you must've had our best interest at heart, right? You're like a secret heroin."

Ms Creo blinked a few times, before giving in and just going with the flow. Ib watched from the sidelines, still mulling the information over. If Acela's soul was still trapped in the Gallery then would her soul still be wandering around, what about her body?

Ib thought back to the Alice's missing soul. Ms. Creo had said that they, those with roses, are Alices, a part of the whole. Does that mean they all come together to create Alice's soul or is it just a metaphor to represent Alice's sacrifice? Perhaps it was different from what Ms. Creo referred to as a  _real vessel_ , so the two are separate entities or one completed Alice that forms the vessel for Nivis Alba?

"Oi, Ib! Let's go to the fashion department a.s.a.p. or there might not be any more kimonos left!" Ib snapped back to attention, surprised that Ms. Creo was nowhere to be seen.

"She left a few seconds ago, you didn't notice?"

"No, sorry, I was thinking about Alice and the complete vessel."

"Urgh, let's think about that later. Right now we have a festival to get ready for and one Japanese student-council president to safe-guard from a psycho portrait."

Ib nodded her agreement, still unsure how they were going to go about helping Soaru with a problem that he probably didn't realize he had. Amelia was supposed to take secret shots of him, just to keep tabs on how close  _Cycloptic Smile_ was getting to him. If he seemed to be in any danger at all from it, then they would intervene...but how? No one else besides from them could see it, and Ib could imagine the question and stares they would receive if they attacked the air.

"Whatever you're worrying about, stop. It's totally going to be fine, and all you should be worried about is getting a kimono and heeled sandals..." Amelia trailed off, thinking about the height difference between Ib and Garry. It wasn't disgustingly large, but heels would always make it cuter and fair! Curse most men for being freakishly taller than her measly five-foot-five and one-fourth inches! Garry and Liam were the worst offenders as they were the tallest of the group (6'2), with Garry in the lead by one-fourth of an inch. The shortest of the bunch were herself and Ib, though Mary would be the shortest if she was actually counted.

Amelia chewed at her bottom lip in thought, unknowingly walking straight into Liam, who had come around the corner of the building. Her nose slammed somewhere around his upper-side. They staggered back from one another, Liam grabbing her arm to steady her.

"Damn it, why do you have to be so tall!" Amelia whined and rubbed her poor nose as it throbbed in pain.

"Ummm, sorry?" Liam retorted, his 'I didn't see you there' comment unspoken.

"its fine," Amelia retorted, to which prompted Ib into blurting out a laugh as Amelia's voice was nasally.

"Hey, this isn't funny!"

By that point, even Liam couldn't hold back his amusement at Amelia's voice change.

"You both suck!"

The two calmed themselves as the afflicted party pouted her outrage.

"Amelia, we still need to get kimonos from my classroom," Ib baited, diminishing Amelia's frustration to that of a small walnut.

"That's right! sorry, Liam, we're in a rush! We'll see you at the festival, right, okay, bye!" The boy couldn't reply as Amelia had already dragged Ib around the corner and a-ways away in five seconds flat.

Instead, he sighed to himself, fixed his glasses, picked up his discarded bag with his own evening attire, and went on his way. He had meant to ask Amelia about what happened with everyone, but Ib was with her. He wasn't rude enough to believe it was her or Garry's fault entirely, but things had exponentially changed since their arrival. He just wanted some straight answers from someone, and Amelia was more of a chatterbox than Luno.

He wordlessly stopped to stare at a patch of petunias, wondering if he should just address Ib and Garry on these mysterious matters. They seemed to know more, or at least just as much as Amelia and Luno, but he wasn't sure how to broach the subject. From a young age, Liam's height had always intimidated people-his scholarly and loyal personality worked to calm them and put them at ease-but Garry was taller than him by a mere inch, and Ib didn't seem to feel threatened or bothered by him at all, even upon their first meeting. She was just quiet and a touch awkward.

Damn it! They were both so endearing! Liam could sympathize with Garry about being miniature giants in comparison to the whole student body and Ib didn't remark of his height like most strangers did. Hell, when he had met Gillian and Soaru, they had shrunk back from him due to his large height, and Dmitri had remarked on it-in his normal casual way of being friendly-but Amelia and Luno and Lumi and Neah had never had issues. Granted that Neah was near six-foot, but the other three barely noticed it.

Amelia's first comment to him was "Listen you potential-perv, this is the girl's room," and Luno had waited some time before even mentioning the height difference. His sister, Lumi, never remarked on it at all, though he didn't spend much time around her anymore thanks to her extensive theatre practices and voice lessons.

He didn't want to lose them, any of them. The others may have shrunk from him at first, but they soon came to regard him kindly and with open jeers and crud topics. However, they had been split with Amelia and Luno on one side, Lumi in-between with Liam, and the others on the other. Liam knew, from a trusty source, what Dmitri had said and what had occurred, but he didn't have to like it! The involved parties had been friends for too long; such a fight should be remedied with civil conversation. Yet, Amelia, Luno, Ib, and Garry didn't seem likely to spill what they've been doing anytime soon.

To make matters worse, Liam was one of the only ones who  _knew_  about Dmitri's real feelings, along with Gillian's. Damn, that girl. Why did she have to be so blind?

Liam felt his heart ache, and quickened his pace. Today was a festival, and he damn well deserved a few hours of peace!

Now, if only he could ask out the girl he so desperately wanted.

* * *

Amelia and Ib were finally up next after nearly an hour of being the last in line. The room was divided into makeshift changing rooms with curtains on either side, but came together at a large three panel mirror. The two girls stepped closer to the mirror, and soon enough a girl can out to help them.

"Hey, Ib!" Raina greeted happily, and Ib greeted her back. The brunette was-more often than not-the fashionista's model and human pincushion, and became familiar with each other.

"Okay, so I'm really sorry to say, but we ran out of traditional kimonos," Raina started, her voice solemn, but then picked up, "However, I do have some gothic lolita ones for you both to try on, if you still want them!"

"Sure," Amelia replied, but was a bit worried about what 'gothic lolita' kimonos would look.

Raina took Amelia behind a curtain first, where she had her try the outfit on, before returning back to Ib after a few minutes.

"Okay, so I'm having Riley tidy up any additional stitching your friend, and then do her hair. As you are my model, so I know your measurements best, you are now under my care." Raina informed the brunette, smiling happily as she began to sift through a few racks.

Ib listened to Raina mumble excitedly over the clothes, throwing looks back at her now and again. After nearly three minutes, Raina found something she deemed lovely and all but dragged the girl behind a curtain to change.

"Okay, so this is a two-piece flower lace kimono dress. The tomoeri, the opening of the sleeves are, the middle of the obi, and both bows in the front and back are lined with raschel lace, and the whole kimono is about knee length so you'll need stockings. The best part about being unorthodox is that you can wear non-traditional shoes!" Raina informed while also searching for some shoes and stocking to go with the outfit.

Ib stared down at the clothing, liking the colours. The background colour was black, but the flowers were pink-purple and red-ish, which tinted the background. The obi was red, the bow tying in the back was red on top, but gold on bottom. The tiny bow in the front matched the pattern of the kimono and was on her left side.

Raina slid some geta reeno with black straps and thigh high white stockings under the curtain for her to put on. She smiled when Ib walked out, fully dressed.

"I knew it would look great! The colours really suit you; they make your eyes look lighter, sorta purple-reddish. Now, on to hair and make-up!"

Before the girl could protest, Raina pulled her over to another blocked off section of the room where vanities, chairs, and a multitude of hair-styling instruments, like straighteners and blow dryers.

Ib sat down in one of the plush seats, looking around at the other eleven girls who were getting their hair done.

"Okay, so how about lightly curling your hair, and parting it on either side of your shoulders?" Raina rambled, already setting up to do what she wanted. She parted Ib's hair evenly on either side of her head before taking out a large curling iron, and proceeded to curl the ends of each side. Raina rambled as she worked, teasing her charge about a  _certain someone_ that she always met after class ended.

After nearly thirty minutes of rambling, Raina stuck in a clip with two flowers, one big and the other smaller, that matched the kimono's design into Ib's hair.

Ib was led out to the three-panel mirror to see herself, and was amazed that Raina was right: the kimono lightened her eyes. Ib held back from touching her reflection in amazement, mainly due to the squeal behind her and the image of Amelia hurrying towards her.

Her kimono was also knee-length, the background colour blue or mint like. The design was various flowers in shades of purple, red, pink, yellow, and green in myriads of sizes. Lace outlined the tomoeri and sleeves, along with the ends of the ribbon attached to the obi. The obi itself stood out as it was black and white-beige, which had small vintage flowers on the light strips. with the obi was a pannier and the top right portion of the obi had a large corsage flower that was pink, green, and white. Her shoes were brown boots and her knee length stockings white. Amelia's hair was let down in its normal waves, but was decorated with a single green rose.

"You look...amazing!" She cheered, grabbing Ib's hands while nearly bouncing up and down.

Ib smiled bashfully, "Thank you and you look gorgeous. The rose is an...ironic touch."

Amelia reached up to touch the accessory sheepishly, "Wasn't really my idea, but it's...fitting."

The two smiled, which is when Raina reappeared with two bags. She handed Amelia the square one with an extensive pattern and Ib a small black and purple drawstring bag with a cherry blossom pattern.

"Okay, so the outfits and accessories are due back by Wednesday. If you acquire any stains, rips, tears, or other complications, please notify us upon return. If what you're wearing becomes damaged beyond repair, you will be required to reimburse the Fashion Department of St. Rose Academy or risk expulsion." Raina rattled off before wishing them luck and an "awesome night."

Amelia and Ib left, not surprised to find the sun dipping closer to the horizon. Ib checked one of the clocks, not surprised that waiting in line for hours and getting ready had taken up most of the day. it was nearly six O'clock, the time when they were supposed to meet up with Garry and Luno at the gates.

They took one look at each other and hurried off, Ib slower as she was unused to wearing the geta reeno.

Garry and Luno were already at the gate when they arrived, both in yukata. Luno's was green, the sash brown, traditional geta, and a brown-green scarf. The fair blond had also opted to wear his glasses. Garry's outfit was dark lavender, the underlining a shade lighter, and checkered as was his sash, but it was gray-purple. Garry also donned a violet haori, white socks, and normal ukon geta with a purple strap.

Amelia tripped once she saw them, nearly dragging Ib with her. They managed to steady themselves before reaching the two males. Amelia and Ib stole looks at the two males, and Ib swore that Amelia was blushing at one point.

"You both look lovely," Luno finally remarked, almost shyly, while making eye-contact with Amelia.

Ib smiled, moving to stand beside Garry, who smiled down at her.

"Hello," Ib started awkwardly, to which Garry responded back just as awkwardly. He was surprised that the two weren't wearing the longer kimono's, but couldn't complain. He liked Ib's legs. He blushed at the thought, unsure if it was normal to find such things attractive.

The tall lavenderette looked back down at the brunette, taking in how the pattern lightened her eyes, and that when she moved her arms just high enough the kimono rose up so that he could see part of her thighs

He blushed heavier, trying to shake the thoughts from his head.

"Hey, let's get going." Amelia suggested, vaguely indicating towards the world beyond the gate.

They started off down the cobblestone path, their shoes clacking with each step. They passed by several groups of people also heading towards the festival, some in couples and others in groups. Lucy, Rose, and one of their other friends joined them briefly to order Ib to fill them in during art class, and Lucy sent Ib a worried glance before she had to hurry away to catch up with Rose.

Ib wasn't sure why Lucy would look so worried, but became distracted when Amelia started taking pictures of their group and others.

"You both may not know this, but Amelia helps out the newspaper and yearbook by submitting the photos she takes during events." Luno informed them after Amelia ran off to take another photo of some students.

"That's great, her photos must be amazing." Garry remarked, quite amazed that Amelia could be so dedicated to her photography.

"They really are," Luno started. "I'll show you one of her covers tomorrow."

Ib nodded, also wanting to see Amelia's work.

The cobblestone turned into dirt road, just as Ib and Garry remembered. They reminisced over the taxi ride to St. Rose, a single life-altering ride that had been nearly a week ago, but felt like a lifetime ago.

"You don't have a poker face," Ib remarked. "That's why you kept losing at Old Maid."

Garry looked at her, appalled, "W-what, that's not true, right?"

Luno gave him an amused smile while Amelia laughed.

The town in front of them grew bigger and bigger the nearer they drew, but it was the glow that truly enchanted them. The soft glow from afar was like a beacon, the true symbol that there was a festival going on. The sun continued to slip lower into the horizon, making the scenery that much more beautiful and the air more thrilling.

The town rose in front of them in a show of grandeur, with strung lights in various colours and stalls of games, food, and miscellaneous objects. People flooded the streets, making the town seem both small and large, smiling and greeting friends.

They took in the scenery, Amelia snapping a few pictures to preserve the moment, before she hooked arms with Luno and Ib, "Let's go eat!"

The girl's three companions smiled, following after her. They casually glanced around, making note of stalls that they wanted to visit, while searching for a food stall that would satisfy all of them.

"Do you want to try that later?" Garry asked Ib, indicating to a game stall where the object of the game was to shoot a stack of cups down.

Ib nodded, happy that Garry had asked her.

They finally found a food stall that catered to their wants, and Garry volunteered to grab drinks from a few neighboring stalls while Amelia and Ib went to look for a spot to eat, leaving Luno alone to buy all the food.

Ib and Amelia looked around, trying to find a bench or table to sit at. They eventually split up, with Amelia taking the left side of the street and Ib the right, to cover more ground faster. Ib moved in and out of the crowd, searching thoroughly, but when she reached the end of the street without a break, she decided to cross over to see how Amelia was fairing.

The brunette bumped shoulders with various people, apologizing hurriedly each time, as she searched the clustered street for her friend. She had just spotted a bit of green and possibly heard Amelia's voice, causing her to look to her left. Around a throng of people she could easily make out Amelia's kimono and boots, but she also made out two others, Gillian and Dmitri.

Ib stopped cold, his biting words coming back to her. He found her eyes creepy and disconcerting, and didn't want to be around her. However, Amelia-from the back-looked tense and he appeared to be bothering her. Ib could tough it out, she had before, and she could again.

The brunette tried to get through the crowd, but the flow kept sweeping her away from her destination. She moved more towards the side, where more people straggled, and finally could walk without facing an onslaught of civilians.

Ib hurried forward, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. She looked back at Luno, whose eyes were watching Amelia and Dmitri. Ib wordlessly took the boxes of food from his hands, and watched the scene play out in front of her silently.

"Listen," Dmitri started, grabbing Amelia's arm roughly-though this was in Ib's own opinion-but Amelia kept trying to move away, telling him to leave her alone.

"Amelia, you need to tell me what's going on. I-" he was cut off by Amelia twisting his arm so that he let go of her.

"Leave me alone, Dmitri. I don't need nor want to listen to you, not after what you said to me!" Amelia yelled back angrily, taking a step back.

Dmitri paused and almost seemed repentant, "I'm sorry for what I said, I don't know why I reacted like that, but I don't want to leave things where they are, da?"

Amelia crossed her arms and looked away, "No, but...I can't forgive you so easily, especially after what you said to Ib! She's my best-friend, Dmitri, and she thought of you as her friend, just like I did, and you stomped all over it!"

"Can you at least tell me why?!" He yelled in frustration, "You knew her for only a few days, Amelia, you and Luno only knew them for a few days, just like the rest of us! How is it that just one day caused all of you to become so attached to one another?"

"I don't owe you an explanation, not either one of you." Amelia stated, looking at Dmitri and then Gillian, who had remained a silent spectator. "If you don't mind, I'm rather busy."

"Amelia, please, at least tell me-" Dmitri started, moving to grab Amelia's arm, but was stopped by Luno.

"I believe she told you she was busy," Luno coolly stated, his arm moving to ghost the other side of Amelia's waist. The girl noticed and nearly blushed, finding Luno's gesture to be comforting. Dmitri watched the exchange and he faltered, unsure of himself, but didn't want to let Luno have the last word.

"What are you, her boyfriend?"

Luno paused to think about it, while Amelia blushed and opened her mouth to yell at Dmitri, when the words died on her lips when she heard Luno say, "Well, _that_  certainly is my goal, but I don't believe that it is  _any_ of your business,  _Dmitri_."

Ib nearly dropped the food when she processed the meaning behind Luno's words, and then realized why Amelia sometimes squealed over things, it was adorable and-now that Ib really thought about it-perfectly cute!

However, Amelia had had a crush on Dmitri for awhile, though the girl told Ib that it had been squashed the very same evening that Dmitri had turned on them. What if Luno just put his intentions out there, only for Amelia to fall for Dmitri again?

Dmitri and Amelia, hell, maybe even Gillian, were flabbergasted, but Luno just smiled and casually mentioned to Amelia that they should get going before the food got cold. They started walking towards Ib, and the girl decided to let them have some space. She went back down the street and caught sight of Garry sitting at an empty table in front of a restaurant. He waved at her, but paused upon seeing her brows furrowed and lips pursed.

"Ib, what's wrong, did something happen?" Garry worriedly asked.

Ib sat down and glanced behind her, making sure that Amelia and Luno weren't insight, before turning back to him and explaining just about everything that happened, but left out the part about Luno basically telling Amelia he liked her. Garry seemed to notice that something was missing, but Ib promised to tell him later.

"I think we should give them some alone time," Ib said, uncharacteristically chewing her food faster.

Garry caught on and increased his pace as well, "We can try out that game stall, and meet back here in an hour?"

Ib nodded, thankful that Garry was going along with her plan, even if he didn't know why she really wanted to give them space.

By the time Amelia and Luno arrived at the table ten minutes later, Ib and Garry were finishing up. The two seemed rather shocked when Ib and Garry excused themselves and made plans to meet back up with them in an hour.

Amelia looked at Luno, "Weren't we the ones who planned to somehow ditch them so that they could be alone...did they just do a reverse ditch?"

"Yes, I believe they did." Luno stated in bewilderment, but sat down and pushed Amelia's share closer to her, "However, you got what you wanted either way."

"I guess..." Amelia drifted off, taking her seat as well. "Luno, did you mean that back there?"

The fair blonde paused mid-chew, embarrassment and nerves kicking back in, but he couldn't dodge the subject, "If you don't reciprocate my feelings at this present moment, then I can hold off until you do."

"Um...d-does it have anything to do with your promise when we were...dying?" Amelia asked, a shiver coursing through her at the memory.

Luno reached over the table and held her hand, "No, I liked you before then, but I had thought you liked Dmitri, so I stayed away."

Amelia felt guilty, "I did, like him, I mean, but it began to wane after a while. That's why it hurt so much when h-he called me a whore and stupid, because any lingering feelings I had were crushed. And, for a moment, it was like my father was yelling at me..."

Luno said nothing, but continued to hold her hand quietly. He knew Amelia wasn't just going to fall for him at the drop of a hat, but knowing that she didn't have romantic feelings for Dmitri anymore gave him hope that he could still come out on top.

"Luno, we still have to find Soaru and make sure he's okay, but how about ditching afterwards to see the fireworks?" Amelia asked as they were finishing their meal.

The blonde blinked for a moment, and then smiled, "Sure."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ib's Kimono: https://www.etsy.com/listing/177971358/japanese-kimono-dress-washable-flower?ref=market
> 
> Amelia's: http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/lemiel/item/opa017/
> 
> Garry's: http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/kimonohiroba/item/menkst-hl-105/?s-id=borderless_recommend_item_en
> 
> Please, drop a comment?


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Festival. Mostly a filler, but the end has plot.

"Art doesn't have to be pretty. It has to be meaningful."

-Duane Hanson

Golden spheres bound together, strung in rows. They bleed and glow, like sparkling snow caressed lovingly by flares and rays. Once the world dims, an aching loss of guidance and light, do they replace the beaten path, opening ways not sought, for they create the winding road, a twisting journey around the brush of that which is unknown.

Golden lights lead the way, testimonies of guidance long forgot, for the longest path is the best path, without a shortcut to get lost.

* * *

The sun was close to setting as Ib and Garry made their way back to the game stall they had seen earlier. They walked close to each other, their arms brushing, and each had the want to hold the other's hand, but were too shy to instigate the act.

All around them people bustled and talked, couples held hands and exchanged touch, and small children clung to their parents, watching the crowd flow with curiosity. Everyone seemed to be part of a large river, the current flowing down the street, and some fish struggled against the current to reach their destinations.

Ib felt like one of those fish, fighting to get where she wanted when the current and other fish were heading the opposite direction. She felt small in that regard, like her existence wasn't anything too important, but also content because Garry was with her. Ib was not alone in her journey, no matter how small or unimportant it was.

"There's the stall." She looked towards the building Garry was pointing at, a small shack with a counter where five guns laid. A child held one of them up and fired at a stack of cups, but missed. "Seems like they use corks as ammo."

Ib didn't need to reply, and followed her companion over to the stall.

"Hello there, and welcome to my establishment. Knock down the cups and you win a prize. The number of stacks you knock down determines what size your prize is. Three ammo rounds are five dollars, five rounds are seven dollars, and ten rounds are twelve dollars. The number of rounds corresponds to the number of stacks you can knock down. So, how many will you be playing?" The owner asked, smiling good-naturedly.

Garry hesitated, unsure of how much he wanted to spend on a game that was likely difficult to win. However, the large donut would be a rather funny gift for his sister. He wondered if Ib was a fan of stuffed animals, but didn't want to ask and promise to win her something only to fail.

"I'll try the three for now," Garry finally answered. He handed over the correct amount of cash and took the three corks from the owner. He chose the gun one over from the center and aimed at a stack, trying to line it up. The gun-though harmless-felt strange in his hands, but he tried to ignore it. He fired at the stack, but the cork barely grazed one of the cups.

Disappointed, Garry tried again, but didn't even hit the stack and nearly hit the owner when it ricocheted off the wall.

"Can I try?" Ib asked, worried that Garry would harm someone if he tried again.

Garry nodded and handed her his last round along with the gun. Ib stood closer to the booth and raised the gun with both hands, channeling all the movies she'd seen and that one academic video on how to handle guns that she saw by mistake. She adjusted her feet so that they were shoulder length apart with the foot opposite her dominant hand extended a bit further, and she bent her knees a bit while leaning forward just a tad. She practiced aiming, trying to get the best visual, and took several deep breaths before firing after exhaling.

The stack was knocked over.

Garry's jaw dropped, "Woah, how did you do that?"

Ib lowered the faux firearm and placed it on the counter carefully. "I saw a program on it once, and tried to remember what they said."

"You remembered the program?" The owner asked doubtfully.

Ib blushed, "It was an interesting program."

"Ib, that's so cool!" Garry excitedly proclaimed. "Can you show me how?"

The two ordered another round of three for Garry, but Ib bought seven. The owner watched, amused that such a small girl was seriously teaching the tall man how to use a fake gun to knock down cup stacks, but also knowingly as he could tell there was something between them. He saw many couples during the festival, and he was bound to see more before he closed shop, but very few of them were as close as these two children. They shared an inseparable bond.

Garry didn't get the hang of it immediately, but he did succeed in knocking down four stacks before calling it quits, and Ib knocked all but one of her ten stacks. She overheard Garry mumble that he didn't have enough to get his sister the doughnut, and promptly asked what colour she would want.

"No, don't worry about it, please. I'll just try harder to win next time." Garry tried to reason.

Ib dug her shoe shyly into the ground and looked up at Garry, "I don't mind. I didn't really want anything,really." Garry watched her eyes drift to one of the smaller prizes, a stuffed yellow chick.

He sighed, "She likes green."

Ib turned around to ask for the large green doughnut, exchanging all her points for it, and then handed it to Garry.

"Can you go to jewelry booth with me?" Ib nervously asked, digging her shoes into the ground to distract herself.

"Sure, but can I meet you there?" Garry asked, trying to hide a smile at his plan.

Ib nodded and started off before coming back, "Don't get lost. It's four booths down on this side."

The owner laughed at the exchange, causing Garry to blush and assure Ib that he wouldn't get lost. Once Ib was enough distance away, Garry turned back to the owner, "Can I have that yellow chick, please?"

"It's worth five point, kid." The owner looked away when Garry's face dipped into disappointment, "However, the little missy must have forgotten that she had an extra point from when she scored for you. I guess, seeing as how you did buy those rounds, that the point is yours to use freely."

"Thank you very much!"

The owner waved him off, "You better not keep the little miss waiting long, she sure knows how to shoot."

Garry chuckled at the joke good-naturedly as he went to go meet Ib at the jewelry booth. As he walked down the road, the small stuffed chick hidden inside his kimono, he heard a somewhat familiar voice call out to him. He paused and turned, wondering who it was, and was promptly met by a girl from his cooking class, Cherry was it?

"Hiya, Garry, you look handsome in your yukata," She complimented, running a hand through her brown hair. Brown hair that wasn't dark like Ib's, the girl he should really be getting back to.

"Um, hi there," Garry - however - was taught respect and hospitality. He would simply engage in some menial two-bit conversation for a moment, and then go back to finding Ib. "You look nice as well."

"Thank you! So, I was walking around and noticed this really interesting booth that's giving out really cute prizes to couples that can answer questions about one another correctly..." She trailed off, waiting for Garry to fill in the blanks.

However, Garry was oblivious. "Really? I'll have to tell Ib so we can go check it out."

The girl's face fell, "No, I meant that you should go with me."

Garry furrowed his brows in confusion, "But we barely know each other, and I'm hanging out with Ib right now."

"Well, what about later? You're just friends, so it shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"W-well, I asked her out to the festival, I mean. Sorry, Cherry."

She lips stretched into a thin line, "It's Sherry, Sherry Lakefield."

"I'm so sorry, I was sure it was Cherry!"

At that moment, Ib walked out of the booth next door and pulled on Garry's sleeve, "Did you get lost?"

Garry sweatdropped as he shook his head, "No, I just ran into Sherry, one of my classmates."

Ib looked to the other girl, taking in the pink streak in her hair and her hazel eyes, and mulled over the name before recognizing it as the one Lucy had told her about. "Good evening, Sherry."

When Sherry looked away, uncomfortable with Ib's gaze, the shorter girl didn't feel an ounce of remorse or sympathy. Sherry was the one who Lucy warned her about, who split Lucy and her best friend up, and who-as Lucy and Rose warned-might try to take Garry away from her like Lucy's friend. Ib didn't like the feeling she was experiencing, but remembered how helpless she felt when she lost Amelia and Luno for a time, and how she felt at the prospect of losing Garry, who she had feelings for that were above the friendship level.

"If you ever get bored of hanging around here come find me, Garry." Sherry stated, looking straight at Ib in contempt, and then melded back into the crowd.

Garry could feel something strange going on next to him, and he slowly looked down at Ib. The girl was still staring in the direction Sherry had last been seen harshly, her lips slightly pursed, and her grip just a bit tighter. The lavenderette wasn't sure how to approach her at that moment, the brunette scaring him with her very aura.

The malevolent feeling passed and Ib returned to normal, her face red in embarrassment at her actions.

"Are you alright?" Garry asked softly, unsure if it was safe to address the topic.

Ib nodded, playing with Garry's hand. "Sorry, I just..."

The lavenderette couldn't stop the small smile that crossed his lips. Ib was really cute when she was embarrassed. Besides from that, it seemed Ib was upset over Sherry's appearance, but why? Could it be that she was, dare he guess, jealous? His eyes widened at this thought, secretly wanting it to be true, but didn't dare broach the topic out loud.

Ib and Garry headed over to the jewelry stand, casually glancing through the glittering merchandise.

The brunette looked through the selection with a keen eye, intent on finding a suitable gift for her mother. The woman had a soft spot for accessories and kept her collection in the very jewelry box her own mother had given her as a wedding present. Any gift Ib had given her mother that was remotely related to jewelry always went inside the heirloom for safe keeping.

She came across several pieces her mother would have liked, but finally decided on an antique-looking amber link bracelet. Ib's mother always wore and appreciated practical jewelry that didn't dangle as her job didn't allow for such leniency. It was perfect.

While browsing a bit more, Ib was suddenly attracted to two pieces of jewelry: one was a silver rose ear cuff that was engraved with intricate vines and the other was a necklace with three tiny fake roses (red, blue, and yellow) entwined within a small vial. The two intrigued her, making her think of Garry and Mary instantly. She nearly blushed at the image of Garry wearing an ear cuff, but paused. Ib didn't want to purchase Garry a gift that he wouldn't wear. Perhaps she should ask him about it first?

She searched out her companion, finding him on the other side of the stall looking at something. A quick call of his name made him jump in surprise, electing a large "eek" that made Ib secretly smile at how cute it was. She would never tell Garry that though, he would probably pretend to laugh it off, but be embarrassed all the same.

"Garry, do you like this?" Ib asked, holding out the silver ear cuff for him to see.

He carefully took it and examined the piece with a contemplative look before finally nodding as he handed it back to her. "Yeah, the design is really intricate. You can't find things like this in the big cities, and for such a low price too!"

Ib nodded in agreement, but wasn't too sure if he was right. Her mother had some pretty impressive pieces.

Garry fidgeted a moment before presenting her with a small golden ring, "What do you think about this, it's ironic-the rose pattern, right?"

Ib took the golden coloured ring and held it  at eye level. The design was simple and nearly vintage in appearance, the sculpted roses raised before molding back into the ring without fault. Ib was impressed at the level of craftsmanship for the roses, which was both eye catching and excellently done. She almost smiled at the thought of a golden rose, but the flower made her feel conflicted. She didn't mind buying a rose-themed gift for Mary and leaf/vine themed jewelry for Garry, but something about receiving roses after what they'd been through made her feel a tad uneasy.

However, Ib also liked roses. The flower always caught her eye and made her feel...strange, like a wistful feeling tinged with a soft shade of sadness.

"The design is quite amazing for such a simple piece."

Garry smiled at her answer, then indicated to the other piece in her hands, "What about that one, are you buying that?

Ib nodded, "For Mary, we'll be seeing her soon. It...just seems to match her."

Garry examined the necklace for a moment before nodding, "Yeah, I don't know why, but I feel like it fits her, too."

"Hey, will you try the ring on?" He suddenly asked, and then floundered around to make his words seem less intimate. "M-my sister, yeah, she has slimmer fingers like yours, so, you might be the same size?"

Ib just blinked and slipped the ring on. It seemed to fit well enough as it didn't fall off when she put her hand down or moved the appendage around. She slipped it off and handed it back, "I'm going to go check-out."

Ib turned around and went to the front, leaving one lavenderette to nearly fall on the floor in embarrassment.

The prices were rather low, something of a miracle for such nice pieces, and they even wrapped her mother's and Mary's gift. Garry made his purchases while Ib went in search of the time. When she had finally found someone with a watch, Garry had caught up to her.

They headed back to the table they ate at an hour before to meet up with Amelia and Luno. The fun was mostly over with and their work began. Objective: find Soaru and make sure he staid unharmed.

"Ib, Garry, over here!" Amelia called out, waving them over from her spot near the narrow gap next to the restaurant. The table had been compromised by another group of people, which wasn't really surprising as it was still busy.

"So, how ya doing?" Amelia asked, playfully using her elbow to tap Ib's upper arm multiple times, her brows wagging for effect.

Ib didn't understand.

"We played a game and I bought some souvenirs." Ib responded, "What did you do?"

"I won this giant plushie thing for Luno to give to Lumi. He's not very good at darts and didn't have enough tickets." Amelia gloated, but only a  _tad_.

Garry silently put his hand on Luno's shoulder in understanding.

"What game-booth did Ib win the doughnut at?" Luno nearly whispered as the two girls went off about some other topic he wasn't listening to.

"The shooting one."

Luno casted him a surprised look before it melted away into one of understanding, "This doesn't look good for us. I was half positive that Amelia would be proficient at throwing projectiles, but Ib - that girl right there - shooting a gun? That must have been a sight to see."

Garry nodded, remembering the brunette's concentrated and steady look. It was, if he was being honest with himself, really hot. Of course, Garry wasn't one for violence without very  _very_ good cause (like self-defense in a life threatening altercation), but even he had his own moments of intense anger, such as the case with Dmitri. If Ib (and Amelia, but he barely noticed her at the time) hadn't stopped him then he probably would have punched the other teen hard enough to break a bone.

He was called back to earth by Luno's elbow in his side, "Let's start the search."

"We spotted him earlier heading towards the northern ruins. There's a large field somewhere around there that's an ideal spot for couples. It's normally empty as it's rather far from the festivities and closer to the edge of the city. Do you want to start there?" Luno asked, addressing Ib and Garry.

The two simply nodded their consent, "It's the only lead we have at the moment."

"We should keep an eye out though, he could have come back," Amelia reminded them as they began to follow Luno.

"How do you know about this place anyway?" Garry asked the other boy.

"I've been attending this school for nearly two years; you learn a few things in that time." Luno stated, but the grinding of his teeth and grumbling made them wonder if there was more to the story.

"Lumi and Neah?" Ib guessed, though she was rather confident in her answer.

Her response was met with more grumbles.

"Luno has a sister-complex~" Amelia sang, and dodged when the fair-blond swatted at her in irritation.

"I just don't like that bed-head!"

"So, you'd be okay with Liam dating her?" Amelia asked, waiting for the inevitable.

Luno stopped dead and, looking at her seriously, asked "does he like her?"

The strange aura emitting from the boy made Amelia shrink back a little and laugh nervously, "No, no, I was just joking."

"I see," Luno stoically replied before the air seemed to disperse and silence settled over them.

Garry and Ib merely watched, nodding when Amelia mouthed 'major sister-complex' and indicated with her head towards Luno.

They reached the northern ruins in under twenty minutes. The buildings were closer together and dilapidated; however, the dim lighting gave birth to a starlit sky. In the not too far distance, Garry spotted a silhouette near a narrow alley way. The figure simply stood there quietly, head pointed towards the sky above.

The silent shadow turned towards them, acknowledging their presence, and started moving from foot to foot nervously before standing still when they were finally upon him. "I know you aren't here for the sightseeing."

Soaru looked at them stoically, singularly at Luno, "Are you here about what you said, Luno?"

Amelia took a step forward, "Soaru, we're just trying to help you, I promise!"

He flinched back, "No! You," he angrily glared at Luno, "ever since yesterday there's been someone watching me, waiting for me to let my guard down! You all must be the culprits; please, stop it at once!"

They stared at him, aghast at how he could have come to such a conclusion. He had seemed fine when they saw him last, a bit shaken at what Luno told him, but not paranoid.

"Is this your revenge, Amelia? Watching me suffer from psychological manipulation; how are you even doing it? How are you all watching me, messing with my things, and whispering at me?"

"What are you talking about? We aren't doing anything like that!" Amelia cried out, horrified that the Japanese youth was experiencing such chaos and that he thought it was them.

"Lies! I'm sorry about what Dmitri said to you, he did go too far, but what was I supposed to do?" Soaru cried and, for the first time that Ib and Garry had known him, looked panicked. His eyes were a bit too wide, his hands moving frantically to run through his hair or crumple his yukata, both of which were now messy, and there was a pinch to his face.

"I know we don't really know each other well, but please listen to me a moment," Garry cautiously tried to reason. He kept his hands where Soaru could see them as he talked. "The anxiety you're feeling right now isn't your own. Your emotions are being manipulated and amplified by someone else. Think about it, Luno talked to you yesterday; it hasn't been enough time for you to feel this panicked and threatened. We aren't here to harm you-we want to help."

"Please, let us help you." Garry had slowly moved closer to Soaru, and that was his downfall.

Soaru lashed out, his fist barely grazed Garry's arm as the lavenderette jumped back. "Stay away from me!"

"Guys," Ib suddenly spoke in a voice just barely above a whisper.

Soaru remained unawares as to what they were seeing when they stared at his arm, but the appendage did feel rather heavy all of a sudden.

"So, that's  _Cycloptic Smile_?" Amelia voiced, eyes wide in surprise at seeing such a thing outside of the Gallery.

The girl was...odd, both in the way she looked and the air around her. The eye was certainly disconcerting and a dead giveaway that she probably wasn't human. The tops of her fingers were hypothermia blue, veins purple briar laced in intricate patterns that faded around her wrists, and her nails were bitten to the nub and bloody and from that, she looked like a rather plain girl clinging to someone she was familiar with, such as a brother or boyfriend.

Her mouth split, revealing pristine teeth, and stretched into something that could only resemble a nightmare.

"Well, I wasn't planning on sleeping for awhile anyway," Luno mumbled, unnerved by the girl's ghastly appearance.

The others didn't comment, the scene almost too phantasmagorical for them to handle.

Soaru quickly snapped them back to the present by demanding that they stop staring at his arm. "Just what is wrong with you all?"

"I'll tell you the truth, Soaru," Luno stated, trying to keep his eyes from fixating on the painting. "There's something much bigger going on, something bigger than even we understand, and you're in the crossfire because of us."

"You did us a favour by distancing yourself, even if we didn't realize it at the time. However, tabs are still being kept on the people closest to us. The most dangerous enemy can't harm you physically, but there is someone who can...she's standing right next to you."

Soaru's face paled a bit, but he bravely looked over to see if the person was visible. He saw nothing but empty space. An odd negative space. It urged him to look away but stare at the same time, and then he could make out something that suspiciously looked to him like the outline of a hand on his upper arm.

He looked back at them, fearful. "I-I think I can see her."

Before they could react or question how this was possible (though a miracle in itself), the tiny girl pushed Soaru into the alley. Though it looked soft and dainty, the simple movement made by a girl no more than five foot two sent the Asian man flying sideways...

And then he was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love some feedback from any of you readers, so please don't feel shy!


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Ib has some character development, Amelia has two breakdowns, Luno disappears, and Garry acts OOC. Also, Amelia and Garry have friendship development.
> 
> AKA, I went back to fix one typo and the chapter wrote itself.

> “ _It is not the language of painters but the language of nature which one should listen to, the feeling for the things themselves, for reality, is more important than the feeling for pictures_.”
> 
> \-- Vincent Van Gogh
> 
>  

Aphotic neon sable blue and purple briar weaves through ebon creases and grooves. A flash of sincerity touches but a moment at the pools; it is done away with fragmentation and internal strife. The frail existence of admiration and acceptance is abandoned for torment and damned phantasmatic gore.

Tribulation befalls them! This poor soul cast away from deliverance, stripped of hearth, tainted by man, and the psychosis of sins!

* * *

 

 They were speechless at the abrupt removal of Soaru, no sounds daring to escape from their suddenly dry throats. Their eyes were drawn from the alley, where the man had disappeared, to the single eye of the ghastly girl that stood before them. Her gaze was unwavering and her large, grotesque smile was still bright and only seemed to inch wider the longer the eye-contact persisted.

Garry felt a cold sweat break out as a shiver ran along his spine, but he didn’t dare blink, afraid that if he did the horrifying scene before him would turn into a full blown nightmare. His instincts screamed at him to back away slowly and, once enough distance was reached, run. However, he couldn’t move, afraid that doing so would break the calm before the storm. Garry wasn’t even sure why he was so afraid of the girl in front of them when he had already come face to face with that strange monster in the Gallery, had gone through Carrie, and demented stick figures. Yet, he felt more afraid of the grinning girl before him than the monster that nearly killed him.

Garry heard a small movement behind him, but didn’t dare look back. He and Luno were the closest to the painting as they had moved closer to Soaru beforehand. Garry didn’t have to see him to know that Luno also hadn’t budged an inch, which left only two possibilities – Ib or Amelia.

The lavenderette remained still, listening to the sound of shuffling followed by a pause, as if to check that everything was still as it was, and then the repetition of these steps. Within a full minute, Garry could see Ib from the corner of his left eye – she was heading for the alley.

He felt both relief and fear blossom in the pit of his stomach for her. They had come here to protect Soaru, his errors be damned, but when he was thrown there was this sense of failure. He had already given up without trying or fighting back because, while Garry didn’t want him to be a victim, he still hadn’t forgiven Soaru for what happened. He put on a show and tried to be genuine, but the memory of Soaru just letting Dmitri and Gillian say what they wanted made him angry. He felt remorse for his own thoughts, but there was also a sick satisfaction that Soaru was being punished for his actions, or lack thereof.

The longer he stared at _Cycloptic Smile_ the more fear and anger plagued him. Was Soaru worth fighting for when he was nothing but a poor friend to not only Ib, but Amelia and Luno who he had known longer? His answer lied in her stare, her unfaltering grin nearly drawing him closer, but his legs remained frozen in place.

He could faintly hear Amelia start moving forwards, hesitantly walking towards _Cycloptic Smile_ in nearly a trance. Garry wanted to yell out for her to stop, but the words wouldn’t form. Every name or joke she ever made at his expense surfaced and threatened to bury him. He tried to reason with himself, trying to break free of the hold that he was under, but it was like fighting against quicksand – each movement only quickened his demise.

_Cycloptic Smile_ didn’t break eye-contact even when she opened her arms out to Amelia, almost inviting if Garry hadn’t noticed the dark shift in the painting’s eye. There was a sudden shattering as memories of Amelia cheering him up, dancing with Ib, smiling, and their own shared jokes rushed back to him. The hopelessness he felt seemed to lessen and he managed to force himself to voice his fear, anxiety, and warning for his friend into a single word – “Amelia!”

Like a crack in a castle of glass, the frozen world around Garry seemed to suddenly shatter. Luno took off in a blur, managing to stop Amelia from taking the painting’s outstretched hand by tackling her. Garry collapsed to his knees in relief when he heard the two faintly conversing. The two got up on shaking legs and walked towards him, but he couldn’t rise to meet them as his own legs still shook, but in relief rather than fear.

Garry saw Amelia suddenly break away from Luno in almost slow motion, her green eyes wide in fear, and it took him a moment to realize that he could no longer see _Cycloptic Smile_ where she once stood. His head sluggishly turned in the direction Amelia ran off, ignoring the feeling of Luno grabbing his arm to pull him up, the fear in the other man’s eyes, and the sinking feeling of what he would see.

He would never be prepared for the sight of _Cycloptic Smile_ hoisting Ib up by her throat and holding her there for what felt like hours, but was maybe a moment, only to throw her into the alley’s chasm. The image imprinted itself onto his brain and his face drained of colour.

“Ib!”

* * *

Before she could comprehend what was going on, Ib felt the air rush around her as was sent head first into the chasm. Her brain could no longer keep up with all the sensations she was feeling, but panic was a constant. It was almost like the time she obtained her rose – the feeling of floating in a never-ending abyss that existed outside of understanding.

Unlike that time, Ib hit the harsh ground and rolled several feet before being abruptly crashing straight into a tree. Ib felt the pain a few seconds later, most of it centering in her stomach, which took the brunt of the tree. She rubbed at her throat, trying to cast off the choked and aching feelings that lingered from _Cycloptic Smile’s_ death grip.

Ib got to her feet and took in the dark and foggy forest around her. Everywhere she turned there were only dark trees in various shapes and sizes, the branches twisting together and creating a canopy far above her head, so thick that not a single ray of light could penetrate it. The elongated trees created an illusion of a tunnel, but they only allowed her the single option of going forwards.

A strange fear forbid Ib from taking the only path, it screamed warnings in her head until she hesitantly decided to listen. She checked herself for her rose, but didn’t find it on her person. ‘Am I in the Gallery?’ It was the only logical explanation. _Cycloptic Smile_ had thrown her into an alley that either was a dead end or linked with several intersections, but was definitely not a thick forest – it would be impossible. However, there was still the chance that because the painting was abnormal that Ib really could have just been transported somewhere outside of Nivis Alba or close by.

To reach a conclusion, Ib attempted to climb the tree she had collided with. She took off her socks and shoes before lunging for the lowest branch, just managing to latch onto it. Ib held tight and walked her legs up the trunk before hoisting them over the branch, pulling herself upright into a sitting position. She carefully stood up, hugging the trunk, and spotted a split further up. With a jump her hands grasped the junction of the split and she pulled herself up into a crouch.

Ib took a moment to rest in the large V-shaped structure, and noticed the fog was thicker that high up. She willed herself not to look down, knowing that a single glance would render her useless with the fear of falling from such a height. One part of the V branched into another tree that had easier branches to reach. Ib took a deep breath and hefted herself up, unaware that the further she travelled into the trees the darker it grew behind her – the forward path disappearing.

After what felt like hours of climbing, Ib stopped to check her surroundings. No longer could she see the path she had taken nor could she hope to see through the thick murky fog that clung to everything. Ib tried to stop herself, but fear and dread gripped her tightly.

She was who-knows-where, Soaru was still missing, she couldn’t see a way out, and she was all alone. Ib feared being alone. She tried to squander her fear by continuing to move along, convincing herself that she would find a way out, that she wouldn’t be alone if she just kept soldiering onward.

A few minutes later, the branch she was on broke, throwing Ib toward the harsh ground. Vermillion eyes stared into the thick, dark white fog in wanting, and her arm outstretched as if to cut through the foggy canopy and grasp the sun, moon, or stars. She did not cry out, she did not attempt to struggle; she merely closed her eyes half way down and embraced the fall.

It was darker on the mossy forest floor, the fog remaining almost like a sun far above her head. The outstretched hand still empty, the wetness on her face was not an illusion, but she hadn’t the energy left to struggle. She laid there, still and numb, with her thoughts quiet for once. The forest would consume her if she lay there long enough, of that she was sure. It would accept lost children into its depths and consume their fear and rotting flesh.

There was a rustling to Ib’s left, but she didn’t care enough to take a glance at the disturbance’s cause. A girl came into her view, staring straight down at her, her long brunette braid wrapped around her pale neck and hung down her shoulder to the forest floor. Strangely, the girl’s head was tilted to the left, but she never broke eye-contact.

“Do you deem the blood moon only a curse to the night as you to sight?” She gave a questioning stare and awaited Ib’s response. When one didn’t come, the woman’s smile seemed to weaken. “Broken from rot, but I worry for you not. Peculiar child, have you seen what I have long lost?”

There was still no response.

“What can’t you see that rots as you do?” She finally asks.

The memory of the hand grabbing her shoulder jarred Ib into a sitting position. “My rose,” she responded. Suddenly, Ib noticed the moss and vines that were attaching themselves to her and fervently worked to tear them off. Once free, Ib jumped up and glanced around at the undergrowth. She stared up into the tree, knowing that she had fallen from a great height, but she couldn’t remember hitting the ground.

“Have you seen what I have not?” the woman asked as she took a step closer.

Ib could clearly see the woman now, her head still tilted and her braid dragged against the ground when she walked. A part of her umber brown hair covered her right eye, but the visible eye was bright cobalt. She also noticed that the woman oddly talked in what could be called riddles.

“I’m not sure,” Ib safely responded. The question itself was presented rather strangely and how was she to know what the woman has seen before. “Do you know where we are?”

“Lost.”

 Ib deadpanned, unsure how she should respond to that as _lost_ wasn’t really a location, “No, I mean is this part of the Gallery or not?”

The woman started to walk and Ib trailed after, “Questions are for not, we are in the land of the Lost, left to wander for things we’ve not.”

Ib felt a dawning realization, when the woman had asked if Ib had seen what she had not, it really meant the thing the woman had lost. “What have you lost?”

The woman hopped over a fallen tree trunk, her hair caught and yanked her back. Ib released the hair from the snag, surprised at its soft texture. The woman brushed off the dirt from her dirty pink dress and continued on. “Mere shreds of sanity, often time, but mostly the path I once loathed.”

“Do you have a name?” Ib decided to ask, hoping to call the woman something other than “you.”

“I have not, it is long forgot, consumed by this land of rot.” Her voice was saddened momentarily, and her smile almost wavered, but she turned from Ib’s line of sight.

“Have you tried giving yourself one?” Ib asked, ducking under a low patch of hanging vines.

“No, if I come to fancy it I will have no need to remember the one forgot,” was the instant reply. Ib paused – she had never thought of it like that.

“What should I call you then?” Ib asked, hoping the woman wouldn’t tell her ‘whatever you wish.’

“Though all long forgot, I do smile quite a lot. If called by a feature loathed, it shouldn’t linger long.”

Ib nodded, taking from the exchange that the woman could now be addressed as Smile.

The trees grew less in quantity and Ib could hear the sound of rushing water. She hurried to match Smile’s pace, excited for the change in scenery. Though the amount of trees lessened, thick moss took precedence and covered anything it could, even rocks. Smile led them to a large river, and Ib recoiled at the sight of the black water. On the surface floated dead insect carcasses in addition to the moss, but just underneath Ib saw numerous red and only a few white lights swimming around.

A red light reached just below the surface and a scream died in Ib’s throat. The red light, upon closer inspection, was a transparent, almost skeletal body. The bony hand reached up to touch just under the surface, the haunted eyes empty sockets, and the mouth was open in reminiscence of a scream.

“What are they?” Ib asked as more joined the first to scream silently towards the sky.

“Souls lost to her rot, unable to be, vessels for another deep in sleep.” Smile fluidly jumped onto a large patch of moss, the pressure creating ripples that distorted the souls’ images.

Ib followed suit, pushing the information aside for later. The river was bordered by moss and trees, leaving them with the option to either go downstream or upstream. Neither direction gave any indication on what awaited them, but Ib noticed several waterfalls in varying sizes upstream, along with probable twists.

Smile chose their upstream path, patiently extending a hand when Ib needed it. Scaling the rock formations was harder and the cascading water was eerie. The skeletal figures would fall from small to large heights, but they always reached out for Ib – as if she could save them. They did not appear to do this for Smile. In fact, they almost shunned her by disappearing or floating away.

 “Just around the bend,” Smile called to her from a few patches ahead.

The dark forest undergrowth around them deteriorated as they leaped from patch to patch, the fog started to lift enough that a cloudy sky was visible, and the water became more cobalt than black. The swimming lights were also diminishing in large quantities, reflecting the sky and everything in-between instead. The moss also let up, giving way to uncovered rocks and a shoreline.

As the bend waned to a close, it opened to a large lake area that continued to a bank far off in the distance. Closer to them was a long pier; Ib could make out long wild grass on the visible land bordering the edges of the bend and behind the pier for miles on end.

Ib leaped more fervently, excited and anxious to finally reach land. It didn’t matter that the pier was decrepit or that she still didn’t know why she was there. The feeling of something beneath her feet that wasn’t moss would be enough to remind her not to give up. It was the silver lining in a stream of uncertainties and fear.

Ib hoisted herself onto the pier and felt laughter bubble at how _amazing_ it felt to be out of the forest and on something crafted by people. Smile walked further down the pier, ignoring Ib’s fit of laughter in favor of doing something Ib couldn’t see. As she stood on the pier and looked out to the other side of the lake, Ib felt ashamed for her earlier attitude. She had been ready to quit and just…die there. The thought caused her to shiver and she wrapped her arms around herself for comfort.

The thought of being alone was always her greatest fear, which was why she put up with people’s stares and forced manners – they acknowledged her existence. Her red eyes were often the source of her isolation as being nicknamed “demon” and “creepy” didn’t exactly attract friends. Her mother also had red eyes, but they were lighter and easier to look at, which often made Ib jealous of her. However, Ib already understood that her mother was a respected business woman because she was proficient and made a name for herself.

Ib’s mother had often told her stories of her own tribulations when she was her age, but the message was always the same: it gets easier because people finally grow up, but the ones who really matter won’t care about the colour of your eyes.

Ib tried to take the stories to heart, but her hopes always seemed to fall short. However, that changed when she started attending St. Rose Academy. Garry hadn’t reacted, Amelia didn’t notice until later (but even then didn’t bat an eye), Soaru acted like she was a normal person, Luno was brief, Lumi was friendly, Gillian was curious, Liam was polite, and Dmitri acted like it was normal. Yet, if that had been true then why had Dmitri said such harsh things about the one thing Ib believed they had accepted. Had it been too early to hope?

‘No,’ Ib reasoned, ‘I expected too much because they were kind enough to include me.’

There were hundreds of reasons why Dmitri commented on her eyes, but Ib could now recognize that he just wanted to hurt her feelings because he was angry and hurt himself. She wasn’t sure if he really did mean all that he said, but the fact still remained that mentioning her eyes meant he likely had an issue with them beforehand. Ib wasn’t sure which she liked better – people who openly commented on her eyes or the silent judgments from people who pretended to be kind.

“Do you deem the blood moon a curse to the night as you to sight?” Ib jumped at Smile’s sudden reappearance.

Smile waited patiently, her tilted head giving her a questioning smile. Ib tried to discern the riddle, recognizing it as one she hadn’t answered earlier.

“I’m sorry, but...” Ib was cut off by the woman who took a step closer to her, her grin edging wider.

“If a curse to sight I will undertake your plight. What I’ve lost is what you loathe, give it to me.”

Ib took a fearful step back, “Smile, I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Across the bank to the other shore the calls are hailing!” Smile lunged at Ib. The small space left Ib nowhere to run and the two collided, the sheer force sending them over the edge of the tall pier.

They smashed into a small rowboat and a crack spread across the center. Neither Smile nor Ib noticed as the former had pinned Ib down and was struggling to tear at the teen’s face. Ib was holding the woman’s arm at bay with sheer willpower and adrenaline, but Ib’s own arm was starting to give in to the pressure.

Smile’s hair shifted and Ib held in a choked gasp at the grotesque sight. Smile’s right eye was missing, a hollow abyss left in the empty socket. Cracks spread out from the socket, reaching into her hairline and her ear. Smile noticed the shift in Ib’s face and drew back with a wailing cry, “Don’t look at me! Stop, please!”

The woman openly wept as she hid her face, but she continued to choke out pleas for Ib not to look. It dawned on Ib then, that the thing that Smile was still looking for was her missing eye. It ate at Ib, the fact that she and Smile were rather similar. Ib didn’t like her eye colour that felt like a curse, while Smile hated the empty socket that once housed her second eye. They both were afraid of rejection, of remarks for something beyond their control.

Ib cautiously crept forward and gingerly touched Smile’s wrists, “Please, show me your face.”

The woman tried to squirm away, but Ib held onto her wrists tightly until she finally gave up. She turned her head in Ib’s direction, her only eye downcast. Her hair was a mess around her face and hung in strands, but Ib pushed them back and looked Smile straight in the eye, not shying away from the empty socket.

“Your eye is gone, Smile, and it’s probably not coming back.” Ib forced the words out. Smile started to weep again, and it took Ib everything to keep her own tears at bay because someone had to say this, had to stop the self-loathing for something unchangeable. “Please don’t cry. I know i-it’s hard, the constant feeling that you don’t belong, the fear of looking at your reflection, and the terror of being alone. I can’t give you back your eye, but I can be your friend.”

Ib barely got the ending part out as the tears poured down her own face, but she had said what she wanted to. Smile cried harder and tightly hugged Ib, not bothering to hide her face or wipe the tears that poured from the empty socket.

They calmed down after a few minutes, Smile still sniffled when she thanked Ib and agreed to be her friend. “Since the loss, friends I had not, but a wandering rose found me here. I fancy Smile, but now I bid adieu. This world is not for you.”

The boat finally cracked in half and Smile wedged the gap wider, and then kicked Ib’s section out into the lake. “Wait, Smile!”

The older brunette merely waved her good-bye, but yelled out one final riddle before disappearing from Ib’s view, “it starts like a crack in a teacup, screeches like a teapot, and then shatters like glass.”

As Ib drifted farther from Smile, a fog enveloped her broken boat and she became unable to see the pier or anything for that matter. There was only the fog. Ever so slowly, Ib started to hear faint unintelligible whispers from within the en-caging fog before the broken boat hit the shore. Unable to see, but led by instinct, Ib stepped out of the boat.

* * *

The grass rustled, the somber song lost on the reticent witnesses of a nightmare, but it does not break the awed ambiance – the silent storm.

The trenches of poignant trepidation did not lessen the shock or the sinking realization that Ib was no longer there – she had been swallowed by the chasm. The image of  _Cycloptic Smile_ strangling and casting her aside was burned into their retinas and would surely fuel many nightmares to come.

 Ire burned to life as the shock subsided, but Amelia’s hot tears and pained yelling ebbed into harsh crying. Her shaky legs couldn't support her weight and she dropped to her knees, but her hand still reached out though only air passed through her empty fingers. She felt fear and devastation grip her heart, but also a burning anger to destroy the smiling painting before her.

_Cycloptic Smile_ stared at her, the spotless smile never waning despite her acts of violence. That single haggard eye remained wide and watchful and intense and waiting – though for what, Amelia didn't know or care.

That stare, that eye, that accursed painting. It needed to be destroyed, annihilated, and burned to ashes for taking Soaru and then Ib too. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

“I’ll kill you,” Amelia said, the words soft but poisonous. The words didn't belong to her, like something had taken control of her vocal cords and said it instead. It shocked the wheat-haired girl that something so uncharacteristic had come from her, but the notion of resisting was swept away by the ascending chants to murder the painting.

_Cycloptic Smile_ , as if sensing the blood lust, seemed to beam and her haggard eyes grew only wider in what could have been labeled as excitement or anticipation.

Amelia stood up, whispering her death threat like a broken record as she took a few steps forward. Her eyes were wide and glassy, there but also worlds away. She didn't have a weapon or plan of attack, but it didn't matter to her. There was only the instinct to destroy, and she would improvise when she needed to.

_I need to stop_ fluttered around in her mind, but Amelia couldn't seem to break through the malicious current.

Someone moved in front of her and grabbed her smaller shoulders to stop her. The deep sage green yukata cut off her view of the painting. “Amelia, what are you planning to do?”

“Get out of the way,” Amelia nearly growled.

Luminous blue eyes stared deep into jaded may-green. His grip tightened on her shoulders, “No.”

Amelia tried to move around him, and though he anticipated the movement, Luno did not account for the sheer strength behind the shove she gave him. He blindly reached out, grasping at her arms that shied away. Garry grabbed for Amelia next, his hand making contact with her wrist before she struck out, but he held his ground.

“Amelia, stop! We can’t help Ib or Soaru by blindly attacking. I know you’re angry, but we need to think this through if we want to help them, so calm down!”

“I’ll kill it, burn it to ash.” Was Amelia’s response, her eyes looking straight at the painting.

“Garry,” Luno addressed as he carefully crossed over to block Amelia’s view of _Cycloptic Smile_.

The lavenderette looked over, his eyes conveying that he already knew. The painting was somehow influencing them the longer they stared at it. It had been evident earlier when Garry was lost in a wave of despair and distrust, but had been more prevalent in Amelia who the painting tried to lure over to her side. Amelia’s sudden blood lust was just her anger and fear being manipulated.

Why though? What would _Cycloptic Smile_ gain from making Amelia want to kill her?

Amelia struggled to stare at the painting in loathing, but Garry kept her still while Luno continued to block her view as he approached. The girl growled in anger, her death threats escalating in volume until she was screaming herself hoarse. She wriggled around relentlessly, kicking at Garry’s legs in an attempt at freedom. She managed to wrench one hand free and swiped at Luno when he got too close, one of her nails cutting into the left-side of his jaw.

The fair blond didn't bat an eye, though the left one did crinkle in pain, and grabbed Amelia’s arm again. Garry let go of the girl when nudged by Luno, who embraced the struggling blonde, locking his arms around her. The lavenderette played look-out by standing in front of them, half facing the painting, but kept from staring straight into her eye.

Behind Garry, Amelia was beginning to calm down, but her screams were only replaced with hoarse whispers. Luno kept her head buried in his shoulder, and together they sunk to their knees. The whispering abruptly ended not long after and Amelia gently pulled away to cup his face where the cut was.

Luno gently grabbed her wrist, “It’s alright.”

“I’m sorry,” was her hoarse response, her eyes glassy with unshed tears.

“G-guys!” Garry squeaked, which instantly drew their attention to what he was looking at.

The alleyway behind _Cycloptic Smile_ seemed to warp and, without warning, shadows erupted from within the alley’s bowels. They branched out and crawled along the adjacent buildings like thick roots. The ground rippled, the shadows haphazardly elevating it. _Cycloptic Smile_ rose with the roots and, in the thick of it, walked deeper into the passage, the inky shadows fading her into oblivion.

“We have to follow,” Luno broke the silence. Amelia looked at him, fear and anxiety but also determination flashed within her eyes. Garry merely nodded, his throat suddenly dry, but he had this urge that he needed to find Ib as soon as possible. He wanted to voice that none of this made much sense, that shadow-games were supposed to be reserved for St. Rose’s walls, but knew it wasn’t the time for questions.

“Let’s get going, Ib and Soaru are waiting.”

Amelia and Luno got to their feet and stood at the taller boy’s side, watching the roots twist and convulse for a moment. “We’ll need a plan to get over those obstacles,” Luno stated as he crossed his arms to ponder a strategy.

“Nuh-uh, just don’t stop running.” Amelia replied with a bright smile, fire shining in her eyes. “We don’t know where it’ll lead us, but I never heard Ib or Soaru hit the ground. With the force _Cycloptic Smile_ used and the given that the alley has to end, there should have been a large crashing sound. However, there wasn't, so maybe the alleyway is a passage to _somewhere_ else.”

Luno smiled at the girl’s well-thought out analysis, “ _Cycloptic Smile_ is unlike the other paintings; maybe she can open passages to the Gallery?”

“Guys, we need to go – now!” Garry warned, indicating to the shadow roots that were starting to recede back into the alley’s depths.

The three sprinted into the alley, which resulted in Garry tripping and latching onto one of the inky vines. He was unable to let go due to the sheer velocity that he was moving at, but he strained against the harsh wind to look ahead and could make out a strange rectangular outline that the shadows were rapidly approaching. The outline almost looked as if it rushed to meet him, but that was all he could recall thinking before he was thrown into sudden darkness.

The feeling of being weightless and the resulting churning of his stomach were the only indications that Garry needed to know that, despite the abysmal darkness, he was still traveling through what he could only guess was air. He could no longer feel the chill of the inky tendrils beneath him and there wasn't the presence of wind rushing along his body.

For seemingly no reason, Garry had the sudden thought to look at what he believed was up. From high above him he could see the same rectangular structure from before, only this time it was luminous and nearly golden. The lavenderette quickly made out that it was a door when he caught sight of the night sky within its depths. It was only furthered when a part of it started to swing like it was on a hinge, closing the doorway, and the corona softly died.

With sudden fervor, more golden doors flickered into life around him in overwhelming numbers. Most of the doors remained shut, floating within the dark expanse. Though his curiosity begged for him to touch one of the doors, self-preservation and fear stopped him.

From somewhere below him, Garry felt a harsh wind consume him, which was followed by a sharp plunge into an open doorway. The harsh gales tossed his about, causing him to somersault and twist with each gust, before harshly spitting him out into the open air.

The feeling of freedom was short lived. Garry’s descent was quick, and he hit the ground and rolled before eventually coming to a halt. Though the spinning and dizzy feeling kept him from pinpointing his friends’ locations, Garry heard a crash somewhere in his general vicinity.

He closed his eyes to combat the spinning, realizing that this was probably what cartoon characters felt like when they were hit on the head. He put the thought aside and tried to focus on his other senses. Well, he was definitely in pain, if the throbbing all over his body was any indication, but nothing felt particularly broken. Damn, he was going to be _really_ sore tomorrow, as if the whole running for his life thing he’d been doing the last week hadn't been enough.

On another note, there was the undeniable taste of dirt in his mouth, which had probably entered amidst his rolling; however, he couldn't remember if he had opened his mouth or not. The only blessing was the cool grass that brushed against his skin, which would have been relaxing if it hadn't made his skin feel itchy.

He opened his eyes and sat up, but the movement had been too quick and caused him a few stabs of pain. He waited for the feeling to pass before cautiously looking around.

It was dark, but not abysmal or pitch-black darkness. It was the type that was temporary, almost gray, much like the bleakness of a rainy day. Yet, it was also different, darker and night-like. Garry took a look at the sky, an endless strait of night, but something was _off_ about it, though he couldn't put his finger on it.

Garry turned his head to look at the alleyway behind him, but found only a half-built structure that opened to a large cluster of dark-toned foliage, which were dauntingly shaped into large trees, low shrubs, and grass. It was a flash, but Garry saw the similarity between the half-built structure and the alleyway he remembered.

Garry was distracted from his confusion when he heard Amelia loudly groan and mutter to herself somewhere to his left. He quickly got up when he saw that the girl had somehow managed to land on a stone pathway.

“Hey, are you alright!” He worriedly called out while walking over to her.

“Just peachy,” she rasped out after turning onto her back with a pained groan.

She took Garry’s offered hand, cringing at the pops and cracks her body made in response. It took a moment for the head-rush to leave her, but within no time she regained her balance.

“Wait a second, where’s Luno?” Garry froze, feeling guilty for momentarily forgetting their missing party member. Amelia’s eyes widened in response at his silence before cupping the sides of her mouth and belted out the missing blond’s name and, when he didn't answer after fifteen-seconds, continued to do so in intervals.

Garry walked around, knowing the blond shouldn't have been thrown too far judging by the difference between his and Amelia’s crash sites, which were maybe twenty to thirty feet apart. However, there was always the possibility that he had landed further away, so Garry upped his scope to around what he thought was fifty feet.

He spent the next fifteen minutes walking around in vain, Amelia’s shouts growing more panicked behind him, and when the sixteenth minute ticked by Garry gave pause. He had been listening intently, trying to focus over the normal everyday outdoor sounds but, aside from Amelia, there wasn't anything to block out – it was quiet. There was no wind, no cawing birds, or _anything_ to indicate life. There was only his breathing, his footsteps, and the clamor Amelia was causing somewhere behind him.

It should have been easy for Luno to hear them.

Garry tried to reason with himself, excuses racing through his mind, but another thought blossomed just as quickly, _maybe he was ignoring them_.

‘No, he’s not the type to do something like that!’ Garry argued with himself, suddenly angry that he would even doubt Luno.

He quickened his pace in an attempt to outrun his thoughts, but eventually had to turn back. Amelia looked at him hopefully, and he couldn't look at her when he shook his head. She went back to walking around and shouting Luno’s name, but Garry couldn't handle her defeated tone.

“Amelia, stop,” he gently tried to say.

She ignored him and continued on until he finally lost his temper.

“Just stop, it’s not helping!”

Amelia turned to him and started punching him in the chest, “Shut-up!”

“Cut it out!” He countered after grabbing her wrists to stop the onslaught. She angrily wriggled and yelled at him to let go.

“You’re not helping anyone, none of them can hear you, and it’ll be hopeless-” Garry was cut off by Amelia’s equally angry yelling, “What am I supposed to do then, huh? She took Soaru away and, even though he was my friend and my responsibility, I was too scared to help him! Ib wasn't though, she went to go help him, someone she barely knew, and then I could do nothing as she was taken away too! They’re my friends, but I was too much of a coward to protect them, and, now, I don’t even know if they’re alive! She already took both of them; she can’t take Luno away from me, too!”

Her voice cracked on the last part as hot, angry tears poured down her face. Her frame trembled and it was taking a great deal of energy for her just to remain standing. She looked fragile and small, unlike the normally boisterous and energetic girl he’d come to know. It was even worse than the fight with Dmitri, and that’s when Garry’s anger ebbed away completely.

Amelia Jones was breaking before his very eyes.

He smashed her to him in a hug, “Don’t talk like that! We couldn't have known what would've happened, no one could. All of us agreed to help Soaru, you, Luno, Ib, and me. Every single one of us is responsible for him, not just you, and we were all scared of her, even Ib. At one point, I didn't even want to save him anymore because I let her get to me. I also felt that way when she was trying to lure you away from us, everything that you’d ever done to me resurfaced and while I wanted to help you, I didn't. I didn't even react when Ib was taken because I was so scared and Luno didn't move until you were in danger; none of us were thinking about Soaru and none of us were prepared for what happened to Ib.”

He had a flashback to that moment, that horrible moment when _Cycloptic Smile_ had picked Ib up by her neck, and he could still feel the fear and helplessness that had consumed him. Garry was ignorant to his own tears and the emotion that permeated his voice, but Amelia was hugging him back.

“I couldn't do anything for her, even though she’s important to me! I let her slip away, because I was a coward. We all were. Ib is…she’s gets scared more than we notice, and when we do she tries to cover it up in order to not worry us. You can’t blame yourself for her actions because she would have done the same for a complete stranger, probably. Luno came with us, meaning he has to be here, though I don’t know where, and we will find him, Soaru, and Ib. You and I are still here, together; remember that.”

The two stared at each other seriously and Amelia sniffled a few times before asking, in a nasally-cold-stuffed-nose way, “How can you say such embarrassing things with a straight face?”

Garry knew she wasn't poking fun at him, her awed and somber expression dead giveaways, but his face heated up anyway. He started sputtering, “W-well, stop blaming yourself and, shut-up, it’s not funny! I’m trying to hold a conversation here!”

Amelia’s small chuckles subsided as Garry silently pouted, though he would never admit to pouting, ever. She looked over at him seriously, scrutinizing him for a moment before poking his upper arm, “Sorry about punching you.”

Garry looked at her, and she almost felt insulted by the surprised look he gave her, but he just nodded and indicated to her wrists, “I’m sorry about before, too. I just got so frustrated with myself and I projected it onto you.”

“It’s alright; sometimes everyone needs a little slap of reality.” She easily replied.

It was silent between them for a moment, each unsure of what to do next.

“We should probably look for Luno,” Garry finally broke the silence, “He probably isn't in the area though.”

“Yeah, especially if he didn't show up while we were having our screaming match,” Amelia agreed. She turned to look at the alley in puzzled wonder, her face contorting through several expressions before she looked back at him. “Why is this place so different? The alleyway we came through was part of the ruins, but this here looks like it isn’t even finished yet. The path also bothers me, too.”

Garry had noticed that their surroundings looked different, but he had thought the road was at least familiar. “Isn’t it the same as before?”

The two stepped onto the paved path and Amelia furrowed her brows, “Nope, this is paved with limestone blocks. These also look rather new…” she trailed off, lost in thought.

Garry gave her time to think, curious to what she was getting at. He didn't know a lot about Nivis Alba, which was painfully obvious, but he had also thought that incidents like their current one were reserved for the Gallery within the walls of St. Rose Academy. He had assumed wrong, but maybe _Cycloptic Smile_ was special somehow. Ms. Creo and Ida couldn't leave the school, but why could this painting? Something nagged at him, urging him to remember.

“Oh, my God!” Amelia exclaimed, repeating the phrase a few times before she grabbed Garry and shook him a few times while asking, “Do you know what this means?”

“What is it?” Garry asked, wanting her to get to the point already.

Amelia began to pace excitedly, “These are limestone blocks, Garry, limestone! It all makes sense, the alleyway, the path, and I think I know where we are!”

“Just spit it out!”

She paused for dramatic effect, “We’re probably a little more than four centuries in the past.”

Garry looked at her, _really_ looked at. “Amelia.”

“Yes, Garry?” She asked expectantly.

“I think you might’ve seriously hit your head.”

She frowned and crossed her arms, “Well, Mr. Know-it-all, let me tell you a little something I learned. Four centuries ago, give or take a few decades, every road and pathway in Nivis Alba was made out of limestone blocks with small gutters for drainage. Closer to the center of the village, the ground was made of mosaics to represent its wealth and culture. This drew in trade and they became wealthier, but then the lake started to dry up and a large scale famine hit. The village’s wealth and prosperity dwindled away. A number of people died, unable to survive, and many left. I’m not sure what happened in-between, but nearly four decades ago a Japanese entrepreneur bought Nivis Alba and restored it. One of his first acts was to replace all the decrepit limestone with cobblestone, even in the ruins so that it would be easier for tourists, though there are a few sections that haven’t been altered.”

She waited for Garry’s response, but when he just stared at her she finally concluded, “This is limestone, not cobblestone. The area around us hasn't even been built yet! We’re in the past, Garry, some four centuries in the past! Do you understand now?”

“Time travel doesn't just… _happen_ ,” Garry pointed out, panic settling in.

“Garry,” she started, looking at him with a raised brow that reminded the lavenderette of Luno, “Can you really say that after everything?”

He paused before carefully responding, “My sanity dictates that I draw the line somewhere. Time travel is that somewhere. Besides, haven’t you noticed that there’s something _off_ about this place, like the silence?

Amelia seemed to consider it, “Yeah, I did notice, but we’re still in the past Garry, but maybe not in a time travel-y sense.”

“Whenever we entered the Gallery, time seemed to move at an incredibly slow rate or pause altogether. This is just a guess, but the Gallery has been around a long time, so who’s to say that it doesn't date back this far? We could be seeing a fragment of time.” Garry guessed, but had trouble believing his own words.

“Well, the school was built some four centuries ago, which would be somewhere around this time period. However, it was built after the Legend of Nivis Alba, but the legend takes place when the limestone was finished, which doesn't seem to be the case.” Amelia deduced, indicating to the compacted dirt that led further into the forest. “We’ll have to ask Ms. Creo when we all get back, she’d know, but, from my limited knowledge, I think you might be right. On a darker note, based on past experience, this place is likely going to try and kill us somehow.”

“It’s almost frightening that we've come to expect this so easily.” Garry stated with a sweatdrop.

“ _Cycloptic Smile_ is still a part of the Gallery and anywhere associated with it has got to be twisted somehow,” Amelia pointed out.

“Let’s just hope it’s not something too twisted.” Garry said in apprehension, an image of the creature from the Gallery coming to mind.

“Well, we won’t find any of ‘em by standing around and theorizing,” she stated before starting to march down the paved path.

“Why that way?” Garry asked, though when he looked ahead it became rather obvious.

Amelia spared him an incredulous look, “I don’t know if you noticed, but it’s really, like, dark here. Over there,” she waved her hand to indicate further down the road where a soft glow on the horizon could be seen, “looks to be just a tiny bit lighter. Now, I’m no genius, but I for one would head toward a light source rather than stay here, in the dark.”

“Sheesh, no need to get snappy, Mrs. Know-it-all.” Garry teased, to which Amelia told him to “shut-up.”

As they walked, Garry looked up at the sky, still feeling that something was _off_ about it. “Amelia, when you look at the sky what do you see?”

She looked skyward, but didn't stop walking. After a few seconds she finally responded, “Garry, maybe _you_ hit your head a little too hard when you fell.”

“I’m being serious here, there’s something _off_ about the sky!” He argued defensively.

Amelia took another long look for a few minutes before stopping short. She looked over at her companion, her expression disbelieving and confused, doubting.

“Garry,” her voice was oddly quiet, “where is the light coming from?”

Garry walked further down the path, closer to the light source. Within less than a moment he crossed out of the cleared forest area. To his left were fields for growing crops, which definitely meant that they were no longer anywhere near the present time. The light source came from further down the path, but it filled Garry with apprehension.

Amelia caught up to him, imploring him for an answer or at least some string of words to let her know that he too had noticed. The area around them was lighter, night-like but not very dark at all, which was strange.

“Garry…”

“I know,” Garry stated before he stared up at the night sky, which lacked both stars and the moon.

The two walked down the paved path, passing more farmland. When a farmhouse came into view, Amelia made a detour and entered the building by breaking the window, though Garry just used the front door that was left unlocked.

Garry followed Amelia around, wondering what she could possibly want from an old farmhouse. She walked into the kitchen and riffled through the drawers and cabinets before taking a small knife and stuffing it into her kimono.

“What are doing?” Garry demanded, alarmed at her actions.

“We both know that something is bound to attack us, like _Cycloptic Smile_. We need to be prepared.” Amelia stated, scurrying around to look for anything else that might seem useful.

“Amelia, we can’t just kill her!” Garry argued, remembering that Mary had told him that he’d burned her.

“I know that,” she slowly admitted, looking at him. “I never said anything about killing. Knives are used for other things. Now, start looking around for useful stuff that we could use later. We’ll meet back here in ten.”

Garry sighed and did as he was told, knowing Amelia was right, even though she had been a bit bossy. He chalked it up to her not wanting to feel helpless anymore, and if taking a few items with them proved beneficial in anyway then he was all for it. However, he still felt guilty for stealing, though no one probably lived here and, if they did, they were long gone by now.

He searched the upstairs rooms, coming across some bandages and salve from a used first-aid kit, a small bottle of oil, and a spyglass. He went back to the kitchen to wait for Amelia, not wanting to snoop any further. He placed what he found on the table, scrutinizing each item and how it may be useful in the long run. The items from the first-aid kit would obviously be useful at some point in the future and the spyglass could come in handy, but what about the oil? He supposed it could be used to refill his lighter, but when would he ever need to use that?

Before he could think about Mary again, Amelia reappeared and dropped a large amount of items onto the table. She quickly started to sort them, neatly showcasing claw hammers, two sickles, a pair of scissors, some thread, and a fire-poker. At the very end she placed two baseball bats, which struck Garry as odd because baseball hadn't been around four centuries ago.

Realization slowly dawned on him and he looked over at Amelia, who silently nodded in confirmation. “I found them lodged in the gutter a little further down.”

They didn't say any more about it, opting to go through the items to distract themselves. After a bit of debate, they eventually decided to take the salve, bandages, scissors, thread, oil, spyglass, a hammer, and the two bats. Garry insisted that he hold onto the smaller items, pointing out that his yukata actually had pockets that were sewn into the chest area. Amelia relented, but stuck to her guns on being the one to have the spyglass.

They each had a baseball bat, though Garry also carried the hammer after pointing out that Luno might need a weapon if the situation arose.

“These are just precautionary measures, we might not even have to use them,” Amelia tried to sound cheery, but they both knew that it probably wasn't the case.

Garry played along anyway, wanting his words to be true, “These are just in case.”

The two walked out of the farmhouse and continued down the path in apprehensive silence. The light source drew ever closer and within mere minutes they knew where it was coming from. Though they were few in number, the oil lamps blazed proudly in the darkness, their light enough to illuminate a dome around them that spanned several feet. There were probably more scattered throughout the village, but that was the least of their concern. Huddled just below the oil lamp closest to them was a man, his back facing them. He wept loudly into his hands, his body trembling.

The two shared a look before cautiously approaching the huddled man. They stopped a few feet away, weary, but being good Samaritans was ingrained into them. “E-excuse me, are you alright?” Amelia called out just loud enough for the man to hear. She took a step forward when he started to wail harder, as if fearful of her.

“Hey, we’re not going to hurt yo-ahhh!” Amelia screamed when the man suddenly threw himself at her leg.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t meant to look, I’m sorry!” He repeated as his mantra and Amelia screamed again when she saw that the man was more like a deformed creature. His head was bashed in and the blood was crusted on his face and in his hair, his body was severely malnourished and she could count his ribs, though the fact that the skin around that area was peeling back made it easier. The worst part was that his eyes were two empty sockets that stared at her, blood seeping out of them. In-between his apologies, Amelia made out several sharp pointy teeth.

Said pointy teeth were now clearly visible and dangerously close to her leg. It wasn't until he started clawing at her that Amelia decided that she needed to get away from whatever the man was. Before she could lift the bat, Garry had grabbed the creature from behind and tossed him to the side.

The man-creature-thing shakily stood on all fours and loudly screeched in their general direction. Amelia and Garry watched as a few more of those creatures came out and started to circle them, apologies endlessly spewing from their lips.

The two looked at each other, “I sometimes hate being right.”

“Do you think running is still an option?”

One of the creatures leapt at them, but Amelia was ready and struck out with her bat, eliciting a loud crack when the metal made contact with the creature’s rib-cage. It howled in pain, skidding a few feet, but stayed down.

“Right, should have guessed,” Garry stated as he combated another creature. He was probably running on pure adrenaline, but Garry couldn't help but feel bad every time the bat made contact with one of the creatures. He knew that he was just doing what he had to, but that didn't make any of it feel less wrong.

Once there was only a few left, Garry grabbed Amelia’s arm and made a run for it. More were bound to gather if they stayed in one area, and they didn't have the time or energy to fend off every single one of those creatures. They needed to find Luno, Soaru, and Ib, quickly and get back home.

“I did not sign up for some apocalyptic bullshit!” Amelia yelled and her sudden profanity nearly made Garry trip in surprise. He couldn't recall hearing anyone swear before now.

“This is an entirely appropriate time to swear!” Amelia challenged, reading his expression like an open-book. “We’re running for our lives yet again, our friends are missing, we’re being chased by human-weirdo-creature-thingys, and while I can handle the paintings and Gallery, I did not sign up for some cliché zombie apocalypse with a creepy painting on top of it!”

“We’re being chased?” Garry asked, casting a glance behind him. He didn't see anything and a quick glance around showed that nothing appeared to have come after them.

“Is that all you heard?” Amelia testily asked and Garry had the decency to give her a sheepish look.

“Sorry, running for our lives, remember?”

“You’re getting real cheeky there, Garry!” Amelia pointed out suspiciously.

“It’s the adrenaline, I’ll freak out when it wears off,” Garry admitted, wishing it wasn't a fact of life for him.

They were coming up to a small bridge when Garry saw a whole group of creatures surrounding another oil lamp. He quickly made a detour for under the bridge, Amelia scrambling to follow him down the grassy hill and under the large bridge. They stayed out of sight to catch their breath, winded and tired from the fight.

Garry could still feel the tingly sensation from when the bat made contact with the creatures’ flesh. God, that sound would be sure to plague his nightmares. Amelia didn't seem to be fairing much better, and since she was the usual distracter, he decided to give it a go to cheer her up a bit.

“Have you ever played before,” he asked, indicating towards the bat.

Amelia nodded, a flicker of pride evident, “When I was younger I would play baseball with the kids a few neighborhoods over. I wasn't very good at batting for awhile so I practiced and they eventually let me on their team.”

“Sounds like it was fun, the practice sure came in handy.”

“Yeah, I’m surprised I can still handle this so well, I haven’t picked up a bat in years.”

“Didn't you like playing baseball?” Garry asked, puzzled.

“Of course I did, I still do, but…it’s complicated.” Amelia finally stated.

Garry left it alone, deciding it wasn't the time to put pressure on her, but he couldn't just leave the conversation there, “Whatever the reasons were, you can do what you want now. Honestly, I've never played baseball in my life and I’m pretty sure Ib probably hasn't either.”

“Why would you say that?”

Garry gave her a look, “Amelia, quite a number of the student body can’t even look her in the eye much less play a game with her.”

“Honestly, her eye colour is no weirder than your hair colour,” Amelia stated, and Garry couldn’t argue with that. His sister was a natural blonde and she told him a few times that their mom was too. She only briefly mentioned that their father was a dirty-blond, though he had a feeling there was a double meaning mixed in there.

“Regardless, you should teach us how to play.” Garry finalized. Amelia merely nodded, but he could blatantly tell she was pleased. With one problem solved, Garry peered around the column, but didn't see any of the creatures.

“We can’t just keep running around in hopes of finding them, we should probably think up of something, like something that would draw their attention.” Amelia suggested.

“Yeah, but we also have to be careful of those creatures. Luno, Soaru, and Ib could be hiding and we don’t want to put them in jeopardy.” Garry warned, but his mind was already racing to find alternatives. “However, you’re probably right. We can’t play the waiting game forever, which is why we need to know more about our opponents. Let’s go over everything we can remember about them, the answer might be staring us in the face and we just don’t know it.”

Amelia nodded, “Their bones can break, they appear to feel pain, and they don’t seem too intelligent. It’s like they’re simply striking out at anything that moves, but they can’t see so…gah! I don’t even know where I was going with that.”

“Think it over. You’re right in that they don’t have eyes, so how were they able to tell we were there?”

“Most of them probably have working ears, duh. I think it’s more than that, though because the ones on the bridge haven’t attacked us yet even though we’re within hearing-range.” Garry paled at that. “Do you remember when we were running? I swear that I saw at least four other groups of those creatures all clustered around one of those oil lamps.”

“Now that I think about it, the first creature didn't attack you until you stepped into the glow it created.” Garry paused for a moment, “Alright, so it’s a definite possibility that they are drawn to well-lit areas, but what about the attacking?”

“Well, maybe they lure people into the light and then attack them. If they can only properly operate in well-lit areas then maybe they have to draw prey into their domain, like with Red-Rover, and if you can’t break through then that’s it, you remain on that side.”

“I’m sorta perturbed that you just used a children’s game to explain a life-or-death situation.” Garry stated, but Amelia shrugged, “It got the point across.”

“So, should we go around and bust all the lanterns?” she asked, to which Garry shook his head.

“No, that puts us in unnecessary risk.” Garry got to his feet and looked out into the village. “The lanterns are pretty bright, but there’s only so many, right? It’s still pretty risky, but if we smashed a few lanterns that are really close together in order to make it easier for us, then the creatures would be forced to migrate to another light source or maybe they wouldn't be able to function.”

“We don’t know if that’s true or not, what if eliminating the light source is the worst possible idea? We should have a way to create a temporary light source if it goes sour.” Amelia suggested.

“How though, and where would we even put the light source?” Garry asked as he looked up at the sky. His nerves started to get the better of him, the anxiety to hurry up and find Ib, Luno, and Soaru threatening to burst. He pulled out his lighter and flicked the knob, watching the flame spark into life.

“You’re a genius, that’s it!” Amelia suddenly yelled, nearly causing Garry to set himself on fire in surprise. “We can always light something on fire as the temporary light source!”

“We would still need a location,” Garry pointed out as he pocketed his lighter and walked up to the bridge. The lantern was at the end of the stretch, the light nowhere near him. This had to be the worst idea he’d ever had, but he decided to test their theory.

He took a deep breath and shouted at the top of his lungs. The creatures stirred, but only a few blindly looked in his general direction before they turned back to the lantern, their empty sockets more pronounced.

The lavenderette turned to Amelia, whose mouth was wide open in shock, “I guess it’s true.”

“Garry, are you _sure_ you’re feeling alright?” She carefully asked, worry etched across her face.

“No, this is going to be one the dumbest thing’s I've ever done, but we need to know what will happen if their light source is taken from them.” Garry stated, a pit growing inside his stomach. He cursed his own stupidity, but there was just this gut feeling that he _had_ to hurry up.

“Let’s get a move on then, you’re going to need the back-up and I’m also responsible since it was my idea.” Amelia finalized, not letting Garry get a word in as she brushed passed him and walked across the bridge.

They toed the line between the dark and the lamp’s inviting dome. The two shared one final look that was hardened with the unwavering knowledge that, if it failed, they would be fighting for their lives again.

Garry ran at the creatures as a distraction, fending as many off as possible while Amelia headed for the lantern. He wasn't able to watch her back, preoccupied by his own opponents, but he listened to her footsteps. The three creatures before him were disfigured like the rest, except one of them had a hole in their face in addition to the bashed in head. Their apologies never stopped, not even when they barred their teeth and lunged at him, aiming to consume some morsel of his flesh.

Garry ducked and rolled, but wasn't fast enough to entirely dodge one of their fists. A sharp talon, yes, a talon, because there was no way a human’s nail could ever be that sharp or animalistic, cut into his arm and he felt himself fall. He kicked one of the monsters in its nether regions, relieved that it appeared to have the same effect that it would on anyone else. He rolled to the side when another struck the spot he’d just been in, but its talon was momentarily stuck.

Garry turned to the third creature and batted it over the side of the bridge when it suddenly lunged at him.

“Behind you!” Amelia called in warning, but Garry didn't have time to dodge. Reacting quickly, Amelia shattered the lantern, praying it would do _something_ useful. There was a strange heat before Amelia was swept off her feet by an intense heat-wave. The area around her nearly glowed gold, crimson, and purple as the monsters burned, prompting her to turn away from the sight, not wanting to have an image to match the sound that would be haunting her nightmares for the rest of her life.

She then remembered Garry and hurried over to where she saw him last. His eyes were scrunched against the heat and soot speckled his face. She couldn't get close due to the burning monster that hovered at Garry’s side, reaching out to take him with it.

A large cloth was thrown over the creature and Amelia instantly recognized that platinum hair anywhere. Luno wrestled the creature to the ground and without looking at her, ordered Amelia to get Garry and go to the inn. Adrenaline kicked back in and she helped Garry to his feet, nearly collapsing under his stature a few times, but didn't notice as she was too preoccupied with getting away from the bridge as fast as she possibly could while half dragging a man that dwarfed her.

After a minute or two, Garry was able to walk on his own, though he still slightly leaned on Amelia for support. They spotted the inn, which was hard not too as the sign was brightly painted and huge. Once inside, they headed for the kitchen with Garry washing his face of soot in the sink and then washing out the cut he received. He then collapsed in a chair, exhausted. Amelia followed the same procedure, before sitting in the chair opposite of him and resting her legs on the table.

“That was a really stupid plan,” Amelia stated to break the silence.

Garry peeled open an eye to look at her, “I told you it was.”

“You should just let me stick to the half-baked plans, I’m much better at winging it.” She joked.

Garry cracked a small smile in return, “Be my guest, I’m done with stunts like that for awhile.”

“That’s too bad, mid-life crisis Garry was sorta fun.”

“Hey!” he said, but there was no bark behind it due to the exhaustion he felt.

Amelia chuckled before she started to drift off, the events finally catching up with her.

Garry heard his companions breathing even out, figuring that she had likely fallen asleep and, though his body screamed at him to rest, there was still the same apprehensive feeling that he _needed_ to hurry. Now, if only his eyelids would stop fighting him.

Just before he could drift off, Garry heard someone enter the inn. He tensed, listening as the person slowly made their way toward the kitchen. When Luno appeared in the door way he let out a sigh of relief. A wave of calm washed over him, a welcome feeling, but the stress had definitely fried his brain because he waved Luno over, waiting until the blonde’s ear was close enough to whisper, “You’re so dead when she wakes up.”

Luno paled considerably, but Garry didn't care as the next question burned in his mind. “What happened to you?”

“I must have landed farther than you both, I was pretty close to the village and just wandered in believing you guys had probably fallen further than I did.”

“We eventually came to the conclusion that you must’ve landed somewhere else. We were further in the forest and Amelia figured we’re some four centuries in the past, probably within a twisted fragment of time.” He paused a moment to tiredly stare at Luno, “You know, she really freaked out when you weren't there. She was terrified that _Cycloptic Smile_ had got you, too.”

Luno looked over at Amelia, his eyes softening, “In any other situation I would be pleased that she was worried about me.”

Garry’s mouth morphed into half a smile, wondering if this was what Ib has glossed over earlier that evening. When he’d first met the two, he had pegged them for acquaintances with mutual friends, but his view changed after the fight with Dmitri. Luno became more bold and talkative with Amelia, openly joking and smiling around her. Garry had thought it was due to experiencing a life-or-death situation together but, when he looked at Luno now, he realized there just might be something more to it. That or his tired brain was messing with him.

“Thanks for saving us,” he half slurred as his eyes drooped closed.

Luno looked at him, half-tempted to scold him about just what he and Amelia were thinking, but he was weak against people half drunk with the urge to sleep. “You would've done the same for me.”

Garry used the last of his energy to muster up a tiny smile, “In a heartbeat.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Omake*  
> Amelia: Sorry about punching you, Garry.  
> Garry: Sorry I manhandled you.
> 
> Yes, it's been nearly 5 months since the last update, but I've brought you an 11, 600 word chapter...which wrote itself. I wrote this chapter in two sections (Ib's journey and then the rest), and when I went back to fix a typo and add just a pinch more detail to the beginning of the second half the whole chapter derailed from what I had originally planned, which was immensely better than the original draft, and resulted in the absence of Luno. Meaning that all the scenes that had Luno in them had to be altered.
> 
> I had wanted to finish the whole festival this chapter, but after 11, 600 words I decided that it wasn't happening.   
> So, I admittedly ship the friendship between Amelia and Garry; they'd just be so sassy to each other (if Garry was willing to participate). I also like the friendship dynamic between Luno and Ib (they have similar interests), which I hope to expand upon at some future point. 
> 
> On a different note, I've been thinking about adding a few pieces of trivia at the end of every chapter from here on out. For example, the first curse-word used in the story was "mind-fuck," which was featured in chapter 11. However, the first vocalized curse-word took place this very chapter.
> 
> To end this long author's note, I've updated the summary, went back and fixed a few typos in a couple of chapters (1, 2, 19, and 20), and leave a comment if you have any questions/concerns/reviews/etc.


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh, the things that happen this chapter.

> "We know what we are, but not what we may be."
> 
> -William Shakespeare

Palpitating incandescence, the kiss of death is dazzling lacework threaded like Babylon's fall. A void without reason for being has continued to peer through the Gate. It awaits the coming day of Lacrimosa, pious prayer whispered from mourning lips, and the inevitability of blight. Even though innocence was raised from the pit, the inferno waits for Judas. 

* * *

 

There was the smell of chalk dust in the air, pink chalk, which outlined the room in imperfect lines. The lighting was dim, but that didn't surprise Garry as he somehow knew there wasn't a light fixture. Strewn on the floor were mannequin heads, used canvases, and unnerving blue dolls. He shuddered, the dolls making him uneasy as their red-button eyes seemed to watch him as he walked further into the strange room.

He wasn't alone. There was another set of footfalls walking in step beside him. He couldn't turn to see them, but their presence took the edge off his fear and replaced it with protectiveness. In an instant everything erupted into chaos and they were running to the back of the room where a painting was hanging on the wall. He could feel the person next to him shirk into his side and tremble in fear.

Like a stranger in his own body, Garry watched himself as he tore the painting off the wall, some of the broken glass cutting into his hand, and even when his own thumb struck the flint wheel that was proceeded by the familiar  _clink_  of the lighter fluid igniting. The painting started to burn and Garry finally looked behind him when an unearthly scream rang through the air, sounding like a dying animal. Despite the savage flames consuming her body, Garry recognized her blonde hair and green dress. Her blue eyes pleaded for mercy as her hand reached toward them, as if to beg them to save her. However, he only watched in silence as her skin yellowed like old parchment before giving away to ash. Within seconds there were only Mary's ashes left.

Instead of regret, Garry felt relieved that the danger was finally over. The scenery dimmed further around him, becoming like static, but he had turned to his companion and, after words he couldn't hear, a familiar handkerchief, which he still carried on him presently, was wrapped around his bleeding hand.

The scene blacked out. Before him now laid a large, bleak expanse where lightning struck the ground continuously. As it drew closer, Garry could make out an oddly familiar figure also drawing near. The flashes bleached the colour of their hair, which gave it a strange light purple-blue hue. He squinted in an attempt to see better, but was interrupted by an unearthly pale hand grabbing his arm. Garry slowly turned to look and a scream died in his throat when  _Cycloptic Smile_ stared up at him, her smile bloody.

The tiny girl pushed him and, like with Soaru, Garry went flying. He soared over the figure looking up at him, registering the person before the lightning swallowed him. However, it was the raucous crumbling of the ground being wrenched apart that tore Garry from his nightmare.

He bolted up with an audible gasp, his chest heaving, and jumped at the sound of his chair crashing behind him. A torrent of memories shot through him; showcasing the nightmare he called his reality. At the ghastly face of  _Cycloptic Smile_ , Garry doubled over and black dots swarmed his vision. The hand that wasn't holding his face groped for the table in an attempt to keep from falling, but felt the warmth of another rather than cold wood.

"It's alright Garry, it was just a nightmare." Luno soothingly repeated a few times as he eased Garry back into his chair, which Amelia had picked up before going to the sink to get their distressed friend a cup of water.

The lavenderette started to calm down, but made the mistake of looking at his hands. Across the backs of his fingers were burns that slanted to the right and there was a small number of additional burns that dotted the area around his wrist, which was also the area where the burns were concentrated on his left wrist along with a fewer burns on that hand. He could only recall the dream of Mary burning and the illusion he'd thought he'd seen last time he saw her. Her words echoed in his head,  _"We met before. You set my painting on fire and destroyed me."_

Garry had known that Mary hadn't lied when she told him that, but he had fooled himself into believing that his past and current self were disjointed. He had felt bad for Mary and ashamed of his past self, but remembering had destroyed his illusion of ignorance.

"Garry, are you alright, where does it hurt?" Amelia worriedly asked, but her voice was softer than normal. "Here, take a few sips…it should help."

Garry removed his hands from his face, a few of his fingers unclenching his hair, to shakily take the ceramic cup Amelia had set before him. His face felt wet, which dully surprised him as he couldn't remember when he had started crying, and his hands stung where he gripped the cup. He took a few sips of the water, each a welcomed cooling sensation for his burning throat.

"Are you alright now?" Amelia's voice was still soft when she asked.

Garry gave a shallow nod before placing the cup back on the table.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Luno asked.

"Not really," Garry started but, at their worried and tired looks, couldn't refuse to give them something, "I just remembered burning Mary and had a nightmare about  _Cycloptic Smile_."

He looked up at them, "I know Mary had told me that I had before, but it hadn't felt… _real_."

"Are you sure it wasn't just another nightmare?" Amelia asked, but Garry shook his head.

"I usually get this sense of reality when I recall a memory, like clarity, and then I just know."

"The sight of those things burning must have dredged the memory up from the nooks and crannies of your subconscious." Luno hypothesized before placing a hand on Garry's shoulder, "That one action doesn't define you, Garry. You did what you thought was best in that situation."

"I guess," Garry responded.

"Did you remember anything else?" Amelia asked, hoping to push the topic to something else.

"Yeah," Garry stated before filling them in on the person he had been with and the blurry events. At the end he took out the handkerchief that had been in his memory from within his yukata.

The cloth was white with red stitching around the hem for decoration. However, the handkerchief was stained with Garry's blood where the owner's name was, making it illegible. "Aside from my lighter, I find peace when I hold this, which is odd, I know."

"It must have been given to you by someone you held dearly and wanted to protect," Luno smiled at how sweet it was that Garry, despite his amnesia, still managed to unconsciously remember the emotions he felt for the person who had given him the handkerchief. The blond already had a feeling that it was Ib as it would explain the mutual attraction, the memory gaps, and the unspoken bond that she and Garry shared. It was a conclusion that Luno was confident about.

"What happened while I was out?" Garry asked in an attempt to change the subject.

"Amelia freaked out on me, cried, and then threw that hammer at my head." Luno indicated to the table where the claw-hammer was resting. "I also found out where our roses are-"

A snort cut him off, "if you call what you did 'finding.'"

Garry noted that Luno's ears had turned bright red at Amelia's words. The blond noticed his staring and pointedly turned halfway around to talk to the girl. "I didn't realize you were awake."

"Sure, pervert," Amelia mumbled as she turned off the faucet and dried something on the bottom her kimono that was too small for Garry to see.

"Where are they?" The lavenderette asked, bringing his friends' attentions back to the matter at hand.

Luno answered by lifting up his frayed and scorched brown-green scarf to expose the upper part of his yukata. Garry looked it over and was puzzled when he came across a patch-work lavender rose right on the hemline, which contrasted against the green yukata.

"Mine's right here," Garry turned to look at Amelia, who was pointing to the front of her beige and black striped obi. He found the bright green patchwork rose right where her navel likely was, but the rose had a rip through one of the petals.

"How did I miss that?" Garry mumbled while Amelia handled Luno the object she had just washed in the sink.

The blond picked up some green thread from the table, which Garry noticed along with two other spools of thread, one of which was blue, before threading it through the clean needle. Amelia stood still long enough for Luno to sew the rose petal back together, while still talking to Garry.

"We all did. The important thing is that we know they exist now and that they seem to function like our normal roses, but we can't use vases to restore them. Thankfully, we have this guy –"she pointed down at Luno, "and he never leaves his dorm without a needle, some thread, and a backup needle."

"You're just lucky my yukata is green or I wouldn't have brought it." Luno commented before biting off the excess thread and standing up.

"What about the blue thread and the red?" Garry asked.

"We managed to find the red thread after looking around the inn, but the blue thread was just because I needed it for a quick patch job for Lumi right before the festival." Luno pulled out a small kit from his yukata and opened the white plastic. "I also have a few other colours on hand, like black and some peach colour."

He put the green thread back in the plastic, closed the container, and then set it on the table. "The worst part about the roses being like this is that the colour of the thread has to match the rose or it won't work."

"Aw, they didn't all go away." Amelia showed them her right forearm where she had a burn, a few smaller burns on her hands, and the frayed sections of her kimono.

Luno inspected her arm closer, "Sewing it did lessen the damage, though. This burn on your arm isn't a third degree anymore, more like a mild second degree, and the ones on your hands seem more like first degree burns."

"They still sting," Amelia pouted before looking down at her kimono with a sigh. "Well, I guess the fashion department can expect a check for this."

Luno and Garry stared down at their own clothes, specifically at the scorch marks and the frayed endings. It was worse for Garry as both his sleeves were frayed and, being the one that had been tackled by the fiery creature, had sustained large charred marks on his chest. Luno's scarf was the main casualty, his yukata only lightly burned on the ends of his right sleeve.

Garry felt trepidation overtake him when he realized that the damage was irreversible, which caused him to hear his sister's voice, angry and scolding about money that they don't have, in his head and he could already hear his pitiful excuses for why he needed money to pay back the fashion department.

"Um, Garry, you okay there?" Amelia asked in worry at Garry's horror-stricken face that just gaped at the wall.

The oppressive air around the lavenderette worsened, "she's going to kill me."

"Well, let's see if sewing your rose back together helps any," Luno voiced while indicating for Garry to stand up. Once standing, the three looked the tallest over for his rose, which Amelia ended up spotting on the side hemline of his right sleeve, just before the frayed mess.

Luno carefully sewed the rips closed. Garry stared in awe when the thread seemed to disappear and the rose was restored back to normal.

"How did…" Garry started, but the other two shrugged at him.

"This place is all sorts of cuckoo – just roll with it for now." Amelia advised before changing the topic, "how are the burns?"

He inspected his appendages and found that the burns hurt less, with some of the ones on his wrists entirely gone. However, the burns across the back of his left hand only diminished a bit and appeared to be second degree burns. The only tweaks to his yukata were that the scorch marks had diminished to smaller black lines.

"Hey, Gar, do you still have those first-aid items from the farmhouse?" Amelia asked, which prompted Garry to pull out the bandages, salve, needles, thread, and scissors.

Garry and Amelia pushed the needles towards Luno, which he took, but both of them were instructed to keep at least one just in-case they were separated again. While Luno split up some thread for each of them, Amelia and Garry utilized the salve for their wounds; only using the bandages on the worst areas.

"Garry, were you cut by something?" Amelia asked while staring intently at his arm.

He nodded, recalling that he had washed it earlier, and Amelia continued to stare, "well, that explains why you're bleeding."

Garry's eyes widened, snapping to his upper arm where he remembered being cut by the creature's talon. His yukata was torn a bit in a straight line, blood soaking through the cloth.

Luno walked over with a new needle and some black thread, "Wash it out, apply some salve, and I'll stitch it up for you."

"W-what?" Garry's voice was small and slightly panicked.

Amelia gave him a worried smile and directed him toward the sink. He numbly took off his haori and laid it on the back of his chair before he wobbled to the sink and turned on the faucet. Garry pulled his arm out of the yukata and freaked when he saw that the cut was rather deep and around it was crusted blood with a few streaks that had managed to reach even his elbow.

He washed the blood away and kept nearly gagging at the constant realization that it was his own blood that he was scrubbing away. He gingerly cleaned around the actual cut, which elicited pain and many chocked whimpers, until there wasn't a trace of blood left.

Amelia saw his pale face and instructed that he sit down for phases two through four. Once seated, Amelia was kind enough to apply a healthy amount of salve to the wound, which stung, burned, and elicited even more pain filled noises from Garry, before Luno took over once the salve dried. He threaded the needle and started the process of stitching the wound closed.

"Have you ever done this before?" The worry in Amelia's tone mirrored Garry's perfectly.

"Yeah, I've done this countless times for Lumi." Garry felt better with that knowledge but, in his relief, he missed the touch of sadness that had been in Luno's voice, but Amelia hadn't.

"She's better now, though, right?" She already knew the answer, but Luno nodded once anyway, "much better than when we were kids."

It was quiet between the three until Luno finished the stitching and cut off the excess thread before bandaging the wound for good measure. Garry tiredly thanked him as he gingerly put his haori back on. He glanced over at Amelia's bandaged right forearm in guilt. If he had never suggested breaking the lantern then she wouldn't have gotten hurt.

Amelia noticed his gaze and frowned, "Garry, you're not doing that cliché thing where you believe my injury is your fault, right?"

He looked away in embarrassment at getting caught.

Amelia sighed and shook her head at him. "Don't get too full of yourself. If I had disagreed with you, I would have stopped you. Realistically speaking, it was my idea to break all the lanterns while you only wanted to break a few, and while you may have decided to break one to test what would happen, it was my idea initially."

"Therefore, we're both to blame," she concluded.

Before Garry could say anything, Luno intercepted. "You both arrived at a normal conclusion that wasn't right or wrong. I also came to that conclusion," the blond indicated to his frayed scarf, "but I was limited to projectiles like bricks and, being that I was far enough away, didn't suffer any significant bodily harm when the fire broke out."

"Does it matter anymore? We now know that breaking the lanterns does something awful, so we just shouldn't, right?" Amelia asked pointedly. "Shouldn't we be focusing our attention on finding Ib and Soaru and then getting the hell out of here?"

"We can't help anyone if we can't help ourselves first," Luno calmly replied before adding, "I would love to go and find them, but we'll only be putting ourselves at risk if we don't know the enemy that's right in front of us."

"Even though we know that, it's still hard to remain sitting here, wondering if the others are alright." The two silently agreed with Garry's view, but they all knew that they would get nowhere without knowledge or planning.

"Going back to what you said, Amelia, I don't think we shouldn't break the lanterns. However, we need to be careful about which ones we do break if at all." The blond walked into the adjourning room before he returned with a few books and a rolled-up piece of parchment. He set the books down on the edge of the table before laying out the map. "I happened to come across this map while I was hiding not too far from here. It documents the location of the lanterns and designated safe spots in this village. You may have noticed that these creatures can travel in the light, but did you know that they can also travel short distances between the lanterns?"

"What?" The two yelled in surprise.

"I didn't either until I found this. Do you see these lines here?" He indicated to a few different sections that contained the same thick and inky line. "These are the spaces that the creatures can pass between the lanterns. They appear to intersect in multiple spots, which may be tricky to deal with. Oh, and these squares are meant to symbolize the lanterns' locations. I don't know if breaking the lanterns could change the map, which is why I recommend only breaking a lantern if necessary."

Garry studied the map carefully for a few minutes. The dark ink of the creatures' paths connected to the squares, which created a pattern that turned into an image. "Is it just me, or do you all see that the squares and passageways create an eye?"

"No, I noticed it too." Amelia worried her lip after she spoke, wondering just what it could mean.

"I believe that the one who made this map noticed it too." Luno spoke with a hint of anger. "The baseball bats, the faucet, and this paper all indicate that there were people here before us."

"This paper?" Garry asked.

"The map itself is old, but these markings and symbols aren't. If you take a closer look the map itself is fading in several areas, but this ink is newer and so are these extra markings. Also, those books right there document several different people's experiences here." Luno picked up one of the books he brought in and opened it. "We can wait to read these in depth after we find Soaru and Ib, but I think I know where to start looking."

He turned the book toward them and on that piece of paper, in sloppy print was:

" _The Lake of Sleep is where the lost one rests. I've concluded this after thoroughly studying all the previous logs from those before me. I don't know who the 'lost one' is, but despite all our mapping and thorough searching of the village, the lake is the only place left for Miranda to be._

_Miranda, if you happen to find this, there is an extra map of the village located just inside the 'police station.' I've already marked the safest route to the outskirts for you. From there, it is uncharted territory to the lake itself as I am taking the only map of that area with me._

_Stay safe,_

_Allen"_

"I wonder if they ever found her," Amelia sadly wondered.

"I've only perused a few of the other logs, but many of them document finding one of their friends near that area." Luno softly responded.

"I hope so," Garry softly added. He flipped through a few pages of the book and noted the myriad of penmanship that changed every so often. It was horrible to realize that there had been other people here and not know what happened to them.

"I…I should warn you, though." Luno started hesitantly, "I believe that those creatures are tied into these logs, along with the eye symbol."

"We'll have to worry about it later, Luno." Garry's voice was stronger than he felt. "We need to find Ib and Soaru, whether they be in the village or at this lake."

"I agree and everything, but what if one or both of them are in the village and we happen to miss them?" Amelia rationally questioned.

"We have a meeting location though. Look at the outskirts here, right before the lake – there aren't many lanterns in that area. Therefore, this would be an ideal base location and, to avoid missing each other, we can copy Allen and leave a note with directions to the outskirts for Ib and Soaru. They'll have to come through here at some point if they aren't at the lake whether to look for us or a way out. I know there are many problems with this plan, but I'm at a loss for what else we can do without wandering around blindly."

"Well, Garry and I already proved that we can't be trusted to come up with responsible plans at this time, so we might as well go with yours." Amelia responded with a genuine smile, "Besides, it beats my plan of burning half the village down, thus leaving only one possible meeting spot."

Luno gave Amelia an incredulous looks while Garry simply sweat-dropped while the girl sputtered about how she already knew her idea had been faulty, dangerous, and simply insane.

Within fifteen minutes the three left the safety and comfort of the inn behind them. The only indication that they had ever been there at all was a note attached to the door by a knife.

* * *

The shadows stretched thinly against the ground, most spaces inky black or murky shades of grey. A crack of light from between two houses split the shadows like Mosses to the red sea. Three lighter figures skirted around the beam, keeping closely to the shadows with determined shuffles. Within that gap between the two houses, more than thirty feet back was a luminescent lantern lit with oil. Creatures lay strewn around the pillar of light with only a few mulling about.

Empty sockets looked in their direction, but few bothered to swipe at them at the border between light and shadow. When one got too close for comfort though, the three were unafraid to retaliate in kind. However, Luno kept convincing his two friends to avoid unnecessary altercations.

It became harder at first as they had to cross one of the largest passageways, the outline of the eye map-wise, which connected to multiple other places. They followed the map and took a detour to a weak spot in the passageway that contained more buildings to duck behind. The altercations were numerous until then, the buildings acting as barriers from the light, but the group remained aloof.

"I think the coast is clear," Amelia whispered once she had peeked around the stone shop to take a quick glance around.

The three dashed into the open square, the last section of the connected outer passageway, set on the safety of the buildings on the other side. It didn't take them by surprise when they were suddenly attacked by two creatures, only that their sprint was intercepted from the front.

Garry narrowly avoided running straight into one of creatures while Luno wasn't so lucky. Amelia wasn't fazed and brandished her baseball bat like a club. Giving a loud grunt from the effort, she struck one of the creatures in the shoulder, grabbed Luno's arm, and moved backwards to avoid being hit by the creature's talons.

Roars echoed in the distance, getting closer by the second. Garry could feel all the little hairs on his arms rise in fear and anticipation as adrenaline shot through him, which nearly froze him in place if it wasn't for the creature trying to kill him. He parried the creature with his bat, disturbed by the saliva that hit his face when the creature screeched at him.

Using his long legs to his advantage, Garry tripped the creature after dodging behind it. With a mighty cry, he slammed the bat into the creature's abdomen and legs multiple times in a blind fury. The sound of breaking bones fell deaf on his ears, but he eventually stopped his onslaught when the creature stopped moving.

He felt guilty for doing something so violent, even if it was in self-defense. He was so tired of seeing the side of himself that was willing to murder and hurt others, like Mary and all those creatures he'd fought since he arrived and the others that he would probably have to fight soon, too. All he wanted to do was find Ib and Soaru and leave.

Garry picked up his bloody bat and looked to the right where Amelia and Luno had just finished off the other creature. He could see that the violence was bothering them as well just from looking at them.

Almost like they were in a horror movie, the three turned to the left when they heard multiple roars and screeches. Coming at them from less than a yard away was a hoard of creatures, which all were screaming and chanting "don't look at me" repeatedly as they ran.

Without a word, the three dashed between one of the houses. Despite having longer legs, Garry stayed at the back of their line, the adrenaline thundering through his veins. The streets were narrower, which supported that they stay in a single file line while running but, after five minutes, the streets began to widen as the buildings grew smaller and more apart.

"Over here!" Luno called to them before he surpassed Amelia and led them to a small bridge that was constructed over a small, grassy river. They reached the middle of the bridge and stopped to rest now that they were far from the lanterns and the passageways the creatures used to travel.

Amelia collapsed onto the wooden structure, just barely holding onto the handrail. Between breathes she managed to get out, "I never ever want to run again."

Luno gave an airy laugh at her comment while Garry smiled between his own attempts to calm down his racing heart. However, it was short lived when he saw something move behind Amelia. He called out to her in fear for her safety and her prompt response was to kick at whatever the shadow was until her foot made contact with it and then scuttle away from the edge of the bridge.

"Ow!" The three paused, their weapons brandished in the direction of the voice. "That hurt."

Amelia got to her feet with a thoughtful expression while Luno hesitantly called out to the figure, "Soaru?"

The Asian youth walked up the grassy hill and onto the bridge, rubbing his forehead where Amelia had kicked him. "W-What was that for?"

His eyes widened when he noticed what they were holding and promptly panicked. "Why do you have those and i-is that…blood?"

The three sheepishly put their weapons away and tried to calm Soaru down.

"No, I will not calm down! What the hell is going on, where am I, and why am I here? Also, why do you all have bloody weapons?" He demanded to know.

"Look, I'm sorry that you're here, but right now we need to find Ib." Luno calmly tried to say. He noticed that Soaru had some strange black stains on the bottom of his yukata. "Are you alright, Soaru?"

"No, I'm not alright, Luno!" He turned his attention to Garry then and balled his fists in anger, "you, you and Ib are at fault for this, aren't you? You're the reason this is happening and you must be using Amelia and Luno, too. I wish I'd have never met you – no, that you'd never existed in the first place!"

There was a loud smack that filled the air.

Luno relaxed his fist before grabbing Soaru by his yukata, "You really shouldn't piss off the people who are trying to help you."

He roughly let go of Soaru, who stumbled to steady himself against the wooden handrail. He didn't retort, too surprised that Luno had physically harmed him, but he did nurse his afflicted cheek in one of his hands. Soaru knew he had gone too far when he yelled at Garry, he could see that now, but he had just been so frightened. He didn't understand how they weren't scared stiff.

"What are we going to do?" Soaru's voice was low, nearly whinny, but choked with strangled emotions.

"We're going to find Ib," was Garry's response. What Soaru had said stung, but he wasn't going to let it stand in his way of finding the red-eyed brunette. "After that, we'll decide on a plan of action to escape."

"A-anyway," Amelia broke in, attempting to make peace (or at least a truce) between the boys. "Are you injured?"

Everyone pointedly ignored the bruise on Soaru's forehead and the one on his face.

Amelia amended her earlier question, "I mean before this?"

"No," Soaru barely managed to get the word out before Amelia slammed her foot down onto the handrail only inches from his hand.

"That's great," even Garry and Luno shivered at the smile she was showing Soaru while they simultaneously thought,  _well, he's screwed._

"Let me tell you something r _eal_ quick," her intonation was followed by a slight pitch change towards the end. "I get you're upset and confused, but you need to stop the bullshit and grow a pair. Ib was the only one who went after you while we were all preoccupied with our own problems, and now she's lost and obviously alone."

Her face etched into a cold stare, "next time you insult them I won't miss."

She removed her foot from the railing and pinched the Asian's ear, "Do you understand?"

He feebly nodded and Amelia gave him a hard look before she relinquished her hold. "Good, now let's get going."

The three males watched her march off the bridge and toward the tree-line. They briefly shared a look, though Garry and Luno were both suppressing small amused smiles while Soaru was simply confounded.

They followed after her until she paused just before the dense forest.

"Luno, what direction is the lake?"

The blond took out the map, which didn't contain the lake itself, but did indicate the path right before it cut off. He opened it and looked up a few times before finally folding it and putting it back in his yukata. "Straight and from there we'll have to wing it."

"S-should we really be wandering through unknown territory?" Soaru nervously asked while shifting his eyes to glance at the forest. "We don't know what's out there or if she's walking around."

"A little adventure and uncertainty is fun, like playing an RPG." Amelia lightly joked.

"Can't be any worse than the creatures back in the village or that one creature in the Gallery," Garry pointed out, determined to face whatever the forest had to dish out.

"I second that. Besides, this needs to be done." Luno added before he left the open field and entered the shadowy lair of the trees.

"Don't worry; we'll protect you if anything happens." Garry stated to the smaller teen before following Luno's lead. Even if Soaru had hurt his feelings, he wouldn't let it stand in the way of the fact that Soaru had been an unwilling victim of circumstance and didn't deserve to be thrown into their conflict.

"That's not the reason…" Soaru trailed off, his voice barely audible. However, Amelia had been standing close enough to hear him, but didn't comment or give any indication that she had overheard.

The four walked through the silent forest, unnerved at the lack of life. The grass did the whisper, the tree branches didn't moan, there was no humming chatter – only their footfalls shattered the all encompassing silence.

The silent forest was also intimidating as the darkness casted the impression that the large oak and maple trees were like dark citadels with raised roots that resembled vein networks. The moss hanging down from the branches of various trees, though mostly elms, distorted the canopy into something akin to a mossy waterfall and, to their eyes, the aspens were ghostly figures cloaked in shadows while the beech trees were cruel, crooked, and wrapped in a fog.

The dim forest was both haunting erratic in what it contained. One moment the group was stepping over fallen trees and the next they could be climbing over earthy walls that towered over a slim stretch of pale shale slabs partially submerged in clear water.

"Maybe we should go back?" Soaru tried to convince them, but the others disagreed.

"We're already in the thick of it," Luno took Garry's helping hand and passed over to the next ledge followed by the other two.

"Do you think that if we burned this forest down it would be easier?" Amelia jokingly asked, but deep down she was a little tired of hiking.

Garry cracked a smile, "I don't think Smoky the Bear would appreciate that."

Luno chuckled at them, and Soaru even let a small stressed smile slip, before stopping to investigate a few broken twigs on the ground. "To answer your question, it probably wouldn't help."

"A break would, though!" Amelia slumped over large boulder and let out a long 'ah' at how good it felt to be off her feet.

Soaru silently took a seat on another boulder with his back facing them. Garry looked over at where Luno was still squatting on the ground, looking at something. Curious, he walked over and leaned over to quietly find out what Luno was so focused on.

On the ground were several snapped twigs, which didn't strike his as odd as they were in a forest. However, Garry knew Luno wouldn't be staring intently at twigs if it was something trivial. He took another look and found that most of them shared a common anomaly – a black substance.

"What is that?" Garry asked in a whisper after Luno had touched the substance and his pointer-finger and thumb came back lightly coated in it.

"I don't know, but there's more of it down there in the water." Luno whispered back and Garry could tell from the blond's tone that he was on to something.

The lavenderette looked down at the creek and could see that the black substance was floating atop the water, though most of it had been deposited onto the shoreline. However, it was small in quantity overall and didn't make to large of an impression.

"There doesn't seem to be a lot of it." Garry whispered again before adding that it was probably alien to the creek as an afterthought.

A strange expression crossed Luno's face after he said that and fixed itself before Garry could properly assess it, but he could tell that Luno had figured something out. Before he could ask, Luno had already said, "Judging by these twigs, the lack of life, and the water quality, it's likely that you're right and this substance is foreign. With that in mind, it would mean that a human had to of brought it here, probably to wash it off, which is why it's in the creek."

His voice took on an edge that worried Garry. "Yeah, maybe, but that just might mean that Ib or even Soaru passed through here at some point."

Luno stood up, his eyes distant and worried, "we need to hurry and find her."

Garry didn't miss the way Luno slipped two of the twigs into his yukata, but he decided not to comment as there were more pressing matters at hand.

They turned around to inform the others that they should continue the search, but were met with only Soaru staring up into a large oak tree. As if he could feel their gazes, the Asian teen slightly turned to them and slightly pointed up. In sync, the two looked up and saw Amelia straddling a sturdy branch and looking out into the distance with the spyglass.

At that moment, Garry understood why some mothers at supermarket back home were frantic when their child wandered a few feet away. The worry built up within his chest, the worst-case scenarios flashing across his mind, and he nearly panicked when Amelia scooted further away from the trunk.

"B-Be careful!" His voice was a mix of panic and worry, his eyes glued to the branch for any indication that it would snap. Luno mirrored his tone perfectly, though the blond likely didn't notice as he was distracted not only with the possibility of her falling but also the momentary increase in skin exposure that he would be a fool to pass-up.

After a few minutes had passed, Amelia looked down at them with excitement, "I found the lake!"

She tucked the spyglass away and climbed back down, though she jumped the last three feet and nearly gave them all heart attacks. Once back on the ground, she pointed in the direction that they needed to go and laughed when Garry lightly scolded her for worrying them.

"I don't know, perhaps she should go back up and check again just to make sure." Luno said with a sly inflection that even Amelia didn't miss, but she took it out of context.

"No, I'm one-hundred-percent sure that I know which way to go." She walked away determinedly and the others had no choice but to follow behind her.

"And I thought you were dense," Luno quietly remarked to Garry.

They continued on silently for another few minutes before Luno broke the silence, "Soaru, I meant to ask earlier, but did you happen to see Ib or notice any sign that she could have passed through?"

The ravenette seemed to retreat into himself and his eyes were fixated on his shoes when he denied seeing the brunette at any time after he arrived.

"Oh, yeah, where did you end up landing?" Garry asked in simple curiosity.

His eyes shifted again when he responded, "Probably around the middle of the forest. It's…hard to tell with how large this place is."

The trees grew sparser and Luno received many stares when he stated that he could  _smell_ the lake and that they were close. The scenery around them changed from dark earthy soil and vegetation to dim gray sand with tall wild grasses that mainly intruded along the opening of the beach in large spread out clusters, though some spread a little farther.

Much like the forest, the beach was also haunting as it looked like a storm would roll in with the way the sand was gray with lighter undertones, the general grayness of the area, the stray drift wood, and the blackness of the water. The lake itself was beautiful in a morbid sense but also unnerving as it, upon closer inspection, did not reflect the starless sky or even stir in the nonexistent wind.

"The water doesn't look sanitary…or safe," Soaru remarked, "We should stay away from it."

"Don't drink the kool-aid," Garry absently remarked and the others looked over at him.

"D-Did he just make a pop-culture reference?" Amelia asked aloud, still looking at Garry. "Garry, you just made a reference that wouldn't be as disturbing in any other situation."

It was Garry's turn to give her a look, "you used red-rover, a children's game, to explain a life-or-death situation."

"You man-handled me!" she fired back in an attempt to one-up him.

"I thought you forgave me for that," Garry started before adding, "if anything, you manhandled me!"

"You know what, you're a seaweed head!" Garry didn't even have a retort for that.

"At least he doesn't accidentally walk into the wrong restroom." Luno joined in good-naturedly.

"At least I don't a sister-complex or hair like Neah's!"

Luno was aghast, "don't even joke about that."

"You all need help," Soaru mumbled mainly to himself, but the others heard and laughed in amusement.

They trekked along the shoreline slow enough to survey their surroundings, but fast enough to give the impression of hurrying. Luno and Soaru had opted to take off their shoes as the heels of their geta weren't doing them any favours with the sand. Garry had opted to keep his shoes on as the heel wasn't very tall while Amelia wanted to run around barefoot, but the time and effort it would take to unlace her boots and take off her socks was unappealing.

Garry stared out at the black lake, the  _Lake of Sleep_  as Allen had called it in his note, and felt increasingly uneasy. The way it looked like liquid tar reminded him of an oil spill and the way it remained flawless was unnatural. The thought that it seemed to exude darkness made him shiver.

Idly, the lavenderette recalled that the lake water looked exactly like the substance he and Luno had seen on those twigs and in the creek. He looked over at the platinum blond, wondering if he, too, had noticed.

Before he could think to voice his question, Amelia pointed at something in the distance – a wooden pier.

With a destination in mind, the four scurried over to the structure. The pier itself was nothing to write home about as it was rather old with the wooden planks likely made from the trees within the forest and had no railing to speak of. The only notable thing was that there was a boat docked at the end of the pier with its painter tied to one of the posts.

Not too far from the pier was a large rock barrier, probably a breakwater, which was parallel to the coast line. It was difficult to make out details due to the dimness of the area, but the contrast of a lighter colour against the black water was prominent.

"We should probably move on," Soaru nervously fidgeted when he spoke, but it almost passed as him simply being antsy.

Behind him, Garry heard Luno ask Amelia for the spyglass, but didn't think much of it as he was distracted by his own thoughts; however, the loud expletive that left Luno's mouth a moment later snapped him back to attention.

"Fuck!" Luno repeated as he hurried to undock the boat.

"What is it? What did you see?" Amelia panicked.

"I don't have time to explain, just get in the boat," the blond ordered, "you, too, Garry. Soaru, stay put!"

Amelia and Garry got into the wooden boat, panic and confusion etched across their faces. Luno finished untying the boat and got on before kicking away from the dock. It didn't do much as the water remained relatively still. However, Luno simply grabbed the oars and each of them with the instruction to paddle.

"Luno, what's going on?" Amelia asked while trying to match her paddling speed with theirs. "Where are we going?"

Luno debated between telling them what he had seen, "we need to get to that rock formation as fast as possible."

The grave tone he used prompted Amelia and Garry to paddle even faster, though the apprehension of just what was waiting for them still lingered.

As they closed in on the rock formation it became easier to see the extra detail such as the dusting of wet sand, the smooth or coarse textures, and the black water that clung to the lower areas not too far above the surface. If they weren't so tense, Amelia and Garry would have marveled at how cool it was up-close.

Garry scanned the barrier in an attempt to find just what had panicked Luno. There was nothing abnormal with the rocks themselves so he looked closer to where the barrier met the water. They paddled toward the left side and that's when Garry saw what Luno had.

On a flatter rock that was mostly submerged in the black water Garry could see a familiar head resting against the lower part of the rock, but the rest was obscured. He nearly abandoned ship, but Luno held him back, "you can't touch the water!"

Amelia had already screamed out her friends' name before snapping at the other two to keep paddling. They guided the boat to be just parallel to and only inches away from the rock. Before the boat even came to a complete stop they were all half over the boat.

"Ib!" Garry called and, when he received not even a twitch, shook her shoulder a bit.

"We need to get her out of the water," Luno's voice quivered toward the end.

Garry hooked his arms under hers and pulled her out of the water and into the boat. He tried to be as gentle as possible when he laid her down on the bottom of the boat. It was then that he and the others realized something was gravely wrong.

The black water didn't drip and remained coated to everything except most of her upper left side at an angle where she wasn't submerged. However, that was not the reason Garry forgot how to breathe or what caused the candle of hope within him to blow out.

It was the pallor of her face that contrasted against the crimson blood, which originated from somewhere behind her bangs, that drew lines resembling flashes of lightning down her face and the unearthly blue tint of her lips that caused all of them to freeze.

Luno lurched forward and fumbled to check for a pulse first on her neck and then wrist.

"She's dead."

"No, no, no, no, no, no," Amelia chanted in grief before she shook Ib a few times while yelling, "wake up!"

"The rose," Luno suddenly said and a light seemed to come back on within his eyes, "the rose, we need to find her rose!"

With their last hope on restoring the rose, the three scanned their lifeless friend over before Garry saw it half coated in the black substance. With jerky, panicked movements, he uncovered the patchwork red rose that was torn apart.

Luno yanked out his sewing kit and nearly dropped it in his hurry. He took out the red spool of thread and a needle and the two made more room for him to work.

"Fuck," the blond breathed as he tried to get his hands to stop their trembling. "Fuck."

He sewed the torn rose back together, biting off the excess as the other two watched and prayed with bated breath. Like with the others', the thread disappeared but the rose was whole again.

"Come on, come on, please," Amelia mumbled to herself with her head buried touching her tightly clasped hands that were turning white from the pressure.

The black substance disappeared from her body as did the blue hue to her lips, but she still didn't breathe.

"No!" Luno yelled before punching the bottom of the boat in anger. "I-I should've gotten here faster…I'm sorry, Ib."

Amelia sobbed as she griped one of Ib's pale hands in hers, Ib's name and her apologies slipping from her lips like the tears that poured from her eyes.

Garry pulled so that she was halfway sitting up and grasped her tightly in an embrace. He was crying just as hard as the other two as he remembered their time together. He could perfectly recall that it had been raining when they met and that he had lost at most of the card games they had played during the cab ride. It was crazy to think that had been the beginning.

She was always there when he needed her most, like when he had nearly drowned or the time she had stood in front of him to make sure no one bothered him while he brooded. Ib had always made it a point to stand by him and help in her own quirky way. She had become a constant that just felt  _right_ to him, like she had always been there and would stay forever.

It had been maybe a week, but being in the Gallery made it feel like months had passed. He had seen many of her facial expressions from fear to the way her lips and eyes softened into a smile when she was happy. Ib was awkward, caring, and one of the bravest people he'd ever met.

"Please, Ib, just breathe," he hugged her harder as he struggled to talk through his hysteria. "I promise that…if you need help…I'll come running. So, please…don't leave me again, Ib."

When there was no response, it was as if his world came crashing down around him. It was in that moment that he came to a realization that only served to further torture his heart. He had lost the one person who mattered most to him and it was only just then that he realized just how dear she was to him.

Garry reeled back when he heard a tiny cough near his ear. Ib's lips parted and she lurched forward, her body trying to hack out the water that should've no longer existed within her while also attempting to breathe at the same time. Her eyebrows crinkled, her chest rapidly rose and fell against him, and her muscles had tensed back up.

Ib was alive. His world instantly brightened and he no longer felt like dying, too. They were all going to make it out of there alive, he had faith.

He hugged her close again, his earlier promise flashing through his head and at the end he silently added,  _I love you_.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omakes:
> 
> 1\. Luno: Fuck!  
>  Amelia: Watch your mouth! You were raised in a church, saint boy!
> 
> 2\. *While Amelia was up in the tree*  
>  Luno's inner most thoughts: panty shots, panty shots!
> 
> 3\. *Also while Amelia was up in the tree*  
>  Luno: *whistles at Amelia's skin exposure*  
>  Garry: *elbows him* Really.
> 
> 4\. *When they find Ib*  
>  Someone: Ib is dead!  
>  Soaru: Fuck.
> 
> 5\. *While in the forest*  
>  Amelia: *trips over root and Garry catches her* Thank you, senpai.  
>  Luno: *purposely trips and is caught by Garry while staring straight at Amelia and mouths, 'he's mine.'*  
>  Soaru: *trips but no one catches him...except his broken dreams...and the ground.*
> 
> 6\. *With Above Setting*  
>  Amelia: *trips over root and Garry catches her* Thank you, senpai.  
>  Luno: *purposely trips and is caught by Garry while staring straight at Amelia and mouths, 'he's mine,' before licking Garry's neck*  
>  Garry: *freezes* What was that?!  
>  Luno: You have now signed my contract.  
>  Garry: I didn't sign anything *is ignored*  
>  Luno: *looks at Amelia* Come, you must sign it too.  
>  Amelia: Oh, my god! You're an alien! Is some tentacle porn shit about to happen, because I have an issue with that. But, I'll hand over Garry to you.  
>  Garry: WHAT?!  
>  Luno: *Nods*  
>  Amelia: And you can have Saoru...  
>  Soaru: uhhhh  
>  Luno: ehhh  
>  Amelia: Okay, so we pretend he doesn't exist.  
>  Soaru: *Gets offended and does the Prussia 'tch'*
> 
> Trivia: While writing the beginning paragraph of imagery near the end of February, my sister walked in just as I was mentioning Judas and told me that we had to put our cat down the next day.
> 
> Also, Luno can't swim despite the orphanage he and Lumi lived being right by the ocean.
> 
> This chapter has gone through a lot of events - my final months of high school, my cat dying, my mom's shingles and cancer, my first boyfriend, senior events like prom and senior days, the break-up, graduation, my first job, and (as of today) my scheduling for college classes in the fall. There are more events that this chapter has seen and I'll always remember this chapter fondly.
> 
> Also, I would REALLY appreciate some comments as I want to know what you all think about White Roses or if you have any tasteful critiques about what I could improve to help it and my writing improve.
> 
> Thank you for reading and hopefully the next chapter won't take nearly four months to complete.


	23. Chapter 23

 

> A guilty conscience needs to confess. A work of art is a confession.
> 
> –Albert Camus
> 
> * * *

 

Brittle are the cages of bone that encompass the aorta, lined with openings that strain against their guard of flesh. The searing palpitations threaten to break through the marrow, each harsh beat slamming against the bars for escape. Throat and lungs forget how to breathe, swallowing and sputtering the same air through parched lips and parted teeth.

The consumption of air had never sounded so harmonious to the trio before that moment. The relief that encompassed them was nearly palpable as Ib continued to breathe evenly in Garry’s arms. However, the lingering fear had not yet left them. The brunette’s near true death was only a reminder of the danger that still awaited them and that they’re lives were not a given.

Luno used his arm to wipe his face, sniffling a bit, before surveying Ib’s face. It was still rather pale and the blood was still shockingly noticeable. He scooted closer on his haunches to get a better look at where the blood could have stemmed from. The other two only watched as he lightly brushed aside parts of Ib’s hair to locate the source, and couldn’t help the fear that followed the look Luno made when he found it.

“H-how bad is it?” Amelia shakily asked.

“It’s not too deep, but she’s going to need stitches. I can do that myself, but we need to get back to shore and get her body back to a normal temperature.” Luno responded, trying to keep calm. He made eye-contact with Garry before saying, “I’m going to need you to help Amelia get us back.”

The two teens stared at each other before Garry gently shifted Ib into Luno’s arms, “I trust you.”

Had it been any other situation, Luno would have been touched. The two teens would have shared a look overflowing with trust and understanding, and while the look they did share had those, it also contained fear.

Luno averted his gaze, unable to keep looking at Garry, at the hope and expectations that flickered in his slate eyes, and all the expectations weighing down on his shoulders. Though it wasn’t Garry or Amelia’s faults, Luno had an easier time looking at Ib despite the dried blood on her face because she didn’t demand anything other than his focused attention and experience with first-aid.

He took out the floral clip that was still loosely clinging to her hair and used it to pin back the right side of her bangs. This allowed him to see the cut that just peaked out before Ib’s hairline and extended back vertically about an inch in length clearly. The cut was crusted with dried blood, but the wound itself looked free from the black goop and coagulated.

Luno gingerly propped Ib up against him to get a better angle on the wound. His hands then worked behind her back to sterilize another needle with a disinfectant he kept in his sewing kit, reminiscent of the days he often had to stitch up his sister’s injuries. She got hurt so often back then that it became second nature for him to carry around some medical supplies for convenience.  

The jarring of the boat caused Luno to refocus on the task at hand. He threaded the needle and prayed that Ib wouldn’t feel the pain or wake up screaming before he started the stitches. Luno’s hands stopped shaking after the third time the needle sutured the laceration, falling into the familiar feeling of bringing disconnected fabric together, though this fabric was an organ instead of something inanimate. He pretended not to notice.

Halfway through, Luno let out a breath of air in relief that he didn’t seem to be causing Ib any pain, though he knew it wouldn’t last. He knew that time would be of the essence when Ib finally did wake because he had been both blessed and cursed with knowledge from the journals he had read. How he wished at that moment that he could be as ignorant as his other companions. Perhaps then he wouldn’t feel so guilty for not arriving sooner.

Once they got back to shore, found shelter, and gotten situated Luno knew he would have to tell them of the severity of the situation – the time limit they would be under once Ib awoke. Despite knowing it was horrible, Luno wished Ib would continue sleeping until they had figured out a plan. He didn’t want her to end up like the other people who fell into _The Lake of Sleep_.

He finished the last stitch and cut off the excess thread before Luno leaned against the stern, still propping Ib up against him to give her cold body some semblance of warmth. His eyes closed in exhaustion, relieved that his work was over for the moment. Luno knew that he wasn’t a doctor or nurse so there would likely be complications, that Ib would likely be in pain when she woke up, and that she would have to wait until they got back to their present Nivis Alba for proper treatment and painkillers. Luno knew, but he moved it aside temporarily to idly listen to the grunts Garry and Amelia gritted out as a result of the sheer effort it took to tear the blades of their oars out of the water and their labored breathing before plunging the oar back into the thick water to restart the strenuous process.

Hearing them, Luno felt that he also needed to be doing something. He chose to think, trying to sort everything out that had happened and search for possible solutions or plans, but his suspicions about Soaru kept popping up. Granted, he knew Soaru was no final antagonistic boss, but there was _something_ about his behavior that didn’t sit well with him. Additionally, Soaru also had the same black substance from the lake on him. However, Luno wasn’t sure if he was just reading too much into Soaru’s behavior. The poor guy was probably confused and terrified and could have walked into something that caused the lake water to rub off on him.

Though he tried, Luno couldn’t convince himself that this was true.

The lake water was black, sticky, and coated whatever it came into contact with. The stream water had been pure, perhaps even sanitary enough to drink from in any other setting, save for a few spots where the lake water had been. Even the foliage around the area was spotless. If the lake water let out into the stream, it should have also been contaminated; however, if there was some purifying system then that could explain the stream’s purity and even impurity. The impurity could have just been a slip through the purifier that wasn’t caught. Luno didn’t believe that though. This space they were in barely made sense, so something as logical as the water being purified wasn’t a likely solution, especially because the space was “frozen” in time and, while he didn’t know if this included the flowing of water, likely meant the lake wasn’t moving through its natural processes. Another possibility could be that the contamination was unique only to the lake. The water back at the inn had been clean and usable, after all.

His thoughts begged the question how had the black goop gotten into the stream and on those twigs in the forest? It was also connected to the questions why was the substance on Soaru and why did Soaru seem weary of going to the lake?  

Luno opened his eyes, if Soaru had been the one to track the black water into the forest in the first place, then that would mean Soaru had been at the lake before entering the forest. The lake residue on his clothes, the coating on the stream and twigs from him either walking through it or trying to clean it off in the stream would answer how the substance got there, but why would he be weary of going back to the lake? Regardless, Luno couldn’t be certain it was Soaru as he didn’t know much about the properties of the lake water – such as if it was still sticky after prolonged periods of time.

He would need to gather more information or clues. Besides, he had a hard time believing Soaru would have left Ib behind if he had seen her fall into the water. Sure, the guy could be very indecisive, but he wouldn’t go leaving someone to perish – right?

_‘But, then again, you’re pretty good at abandoning people, just like you did to your father when you found out he was gay.’_ The very words he threw in Soaru’s face just the day before resurfaced. It had been a low blow that Luno wasn’t proud of, though it had felt sickeningly good to finally hurt Soaru’s feelings after he had hurt theirs, because he knew that Soaru had had his own reasons and circumstances for leaving his father behind; however, he couldn’t help but wonder if Soaru had it in him to abandon someone else.

Luno sighed to himself. At this stage in the game, he couldn’t go doubting his friends, even those who didn’t consider him much of a friend anymore. He cursed Ida for messing everything up, not caring about his religion’s teachings on forgiveness – he was tired of always being worried and afraid. He knew only so much about treating wounds and he only had so much medical supplies. When they got back to school, he would need to brush up more on his first-aid and restock on supplies, just in case.

God, he wanted a latte. He didn’t care how selfish that sounded, he needed some espresso shots to keep himself from falling apart. Just for good measure, he would ask for extra whipped cream…and some of those brown sprinkles he could never remember the name of, too. The blond suddenly had an even better idea; he would just buy two lattes with extra espresso and whipped cream and sprinkles – perfect. With fall descending upon the school, he supposed he could get a hot latte but, then again, it was still primarily warm so perhaps he should get it iced. The bench he often used when he worked was set up closer to the entrance, which for some reason was always cold, so he leaned more towards a hot latte. Just thinking about the caffeinated beverages he would indulge in helped him to feel more awake and alert.

Realizing how off topic he was, Luno pushed all latte thoughts aside after making a note in the back of his head to solve his internal latte conflict another time.

He took a look around and noted how they were very close to shore, which was heightened by the details he could make out on Soaru’s figure in the distance. The Japanese teen seemed to be dragging his feet and his hands were fidgeting, but he was coming towards where the boat would likely dock on the beach. Luno tried to lock eyes with him when he could finally see his face clearly, but the other teen wouldn’t hold his gaze for long.

When the boat finally came to a halt on the pallid sand of the shoreline, Soaru was there waiting for them. The tension in the teens body was so coiled that he nearly fell over when Amelia screamed a long sigh, stretching her arms and back while standing up.

“Rowing through that goo was rough,” Amelia lamented as she stretched her arms, wincing at the resulting pops and cracks. “My arms felt like they were going to fall off.”

“At least we made it,” Garry said in agreement while he gripped his left shoulder and rotated it forward to work out the kinks before swapping sides to do the other shoulder. Once finished, Garry stepped off the boat and helped Amelia down first before taking Ib at Luno’s insistence that he could get out of the boat just fine on his own.

“I-is she alright?” Soaru asked when he looked at Ib.

“She’s breathing.” Luno watched Soaru sigh in relief at his statement.

“It’s fortunate that you made it in time,” Soaru spoke up, but quickly realized he shouldn’t have said that last part with the way their faces seemed to become downcast.

“Yeah, we were real lucky this time,” Amelia’s voice lacked its usual playfulness. “But Luno had to stitch her up on the way back.”

“Speaking of that, we need to find shelter and get her back to a stable temperature. She felt rather cold from being in the water.” Luno pointed out.

“Could she still get hypothermia?” Amelia anxiously questioned with wide eyes before realizing he was serious.

“She does feel rather cold,” Garry worriedly said. He gripped Ib a little closer to him, his mind racing as to what to do. “If there was a fireplace or simply a safe spot with something burnable, I could light a fire.”

Before Amelia could question if Garry had been a boy scout, Soaru unintentionally cut her off. “There’s a house not too far from here…I could show you the way, if you want.”

Amelia jumped at the chance and Garry agreed, his shoulders slightly relaxing at the news, but Luno’s brows only furrowed as did his suspicions.

They followed Soaru further up the beach and into the forest, almost surprised that the trek lasted what felt like merely fifteen minutes, possibly twenty, before they arrived at a stone thatched house that was nearly hidden by towering elm trees, most coated in moss. Despite the dimness of the area that contorted the ivy clinging to sections of the stone into shadowy hands, the two-story house itself was rather pleasant to look at.

 “There’s a fireplace in the room to the left.” Soaru informed them before opening the wooden door, which was miraculously unlocked. “I’ll go grab some wood from out back.”

“Alright,” Luno responded before following Garry and Amelia inside, but he cast a glance back at Soaru’s retreating figure until it disappeared around the corner.

The room they entered was rather homey with light oak walls and a patterned carpet that covered most of the wooden flooring. There were upholstered chairs and even a chaise lounge adorning the room along with a few other items of furniture.

“It sure isn’t a sofa, but this should do,” Amelia looked back at them before pushing the chaise lounge closer to the fireplace. “You go on ahead and start that fire, I’m going to see if I can find her a change of clothes.”

“That’s a good idea. Her clothes are rather damp.” Luno remarked as Garry gently laid Ib down.

“Will you both be alright in my absence?” Amelia watched the tall teen flick open his lighter and ignite the bits of wood left in the fireplace.

“Going to need more wood soon—“Garry paused, eyes narrowed as he watched something in the fireplace for a moment. Finally, he turned to the other two still perplexed. “That black lake water is burning.”

“Garry, you must be seeing things,” Amelia said in disbelief as she and Luno walked closer. They followed Garry’s line of sight to see that the black water that coated parts of the wood was in fact not evaporating, but actually burning.

Amelia reared back, “Did someone spike that water at the inn, because I’m seeing it, too.”

“Yes, because that’s what this all is – an acid trip,” Garry sarcastically remarked.

“Well, _that_ would certainly explain your snippiness.” Amelia teased before looking over at Luno. “Are you seeing this too, or was it really just the water?”

“It’s real, and it probably has something to do with the whole black substance coating the water.” He looked away from the anomaly before him. “At least we now know that it’s flammable.”

“Highly,” Amelia tacked on before heading out of the room. “Be back in a jiffy.”

“The likelihood of finding something that fits Ib should be unlikely,” Luno remarked out loud.

Garry nodded in agreement, but decided to just let Amelia occupy herself. The amount of rowing, running, and emotional turmoil that he had undergone in a small matter of time had left him feeling exhausted. He would love to just have some peace, even if only for a minute.

He sunk to the floor and leaned back against the chaise lounge, resting his head on the cushioned upholstery. A shiver coursed through him when the fire started to warm only his legs, which left the rest of him feeling colder than normal. “I can’t wait to get back and put on some actual clothes.”

Luno walked over to the writing desk on Garry’s left and nodded in agreement, “it’s suitable for the festival, but definitely not for all the running we’ve been doing.”

“At this rate, we’ll all be repaying the fashion department.” Garry sighed at the truth of his own statement. His sister was going to kill him when she received the bill.

“Yeah, that’s going to be a hefty bill. Our clothes are singed, you have a rip in yours from that talon, Amelia’s missing her corsage and the back of her left leg stocking is torn, the ends of Soaru’s yukata are stained, and Ib…she’s missing her shoes.” Luno listed, blinking when he realized that last one.

Garry turned his head to the right and saw that Ib really wasn’t wearing shoes. “Probably fell off in the water.”

“Seems that way,” Luno said before looking back at the writing desk, specifically at some of the black substance that was on the stool. He knelt down and gently touched it with his index finger. The substance that he knew to be rather sticky was dry and didn’t rub off on his hand when he proceeded to touch it a few more times.

“That’s strange, that black water is on the stool over here, but it’s dry.” Garry looked over at him curiously.

“Does that mean it’s not actually water?”

“I’m not sure. When I fixed Ib’s rose the substance disappeared, but she was then damp.” Luno narrowed his eyebrows in thought. “Perhaps bits of water are mixed into the substance or the substance itself is a perverted form of water?”

Garry shrugged, “In a way, I’m not sure that it matters.”

“Maybe not in the grand scheme of things, but the fact that the substance is dried here indicates that it can dry after a prolonged period of time. Think about it, Garry, the twigs we found coated in the lake water and the bits floating in the stream were still sticky – do you know what that means?”

“That they hadn’t dried…?” Garry guessed, wondering just what the importance of whether or not the weird lake goo was dry or not was.

Luno began to start making gestures and pace in front of the writing desk as he talked, “Yes, they hadn’t dried, meaning that they were fresh – someone had tracked it all the way into the forest from the lake _recently_.”

“Okay, but there’s only us here…right?” Garry hesitated, looking at Luno in slight fear that there could be some dangerous person or thing walking around at that moment.

“There’s nothing that indicates otherwise,” Luno responded before getting back to his point. “Meaning, it had to be one of us who tracked the water into the forest. You and Amelia couldn’t have, and I didn’t either. Evidently, we didn’t have any on us from before finding the lake.”

“That would just leave Soaru seeing as how Ib certainly couldn’t have.”

Luno sighed, “I was afraid of that.”

Garry felt a pit in his stomach and his throat felt tight as the implications that his friend was making started to dawn on him. He sat up and turned to face the blond, “what exactly are you getting at?”

“I just hope my suspicions turn out to be wrong.” He responded solemnly.

Silence encompassed the two, save for the crackling of the fire as it continued to burn its limited supply of kindle. Both wrapped themselves up in their thoughts. Luno focused on his suspicions while Garry refocused back on Ib. When she woke up, he was going to tell her about how Amelia was going to teach them baseball and how, without her and Luno’s guidance, he and Amelia were the most reckless partners in crime. He would make sure to highlight how Amelia broke into an unlocked farmhouse but, most importantly, he would make sure she knew how much she meant to him.  

It would be a long talk that Amelia and Luno would likely interrupt to interject some tidbits of, most likely embarrassing, information that Garry would rather Ib not hear. That’s what they would focus on – things they had been able to walk away from.

“I’m going to go see if Soaru needs help with that wood.” Luno said before exiting the room to find the other male, thoughts racing with implications. He wanted to confront Soaru without worrying the other two – especially if he was wrong like he hoped he was.

Luno walked past the front door to the dining room, which was also homely like the sitting room but also bigger than what was needed for only two people, if the legend was anything to go by. Deciding the size wasn’t important, he entered the kitchen. The kitchen was narrow but long, stretching out on either side of him. Cooking utensils and pans hung neatly from the wall with nearly perfect organization. He peered out one of the windows into the backyard, spotting a well and a hatchet buried within a clean cut stump, a few pieces of lumber neatly placed next to it.

Finally, Luno spotted Soaru near a lumber shed. He was bent down with his back facing the window. It was an innocent scene, enough to shake Luno into second-guessing himself. Pressing his forehead against the cool glass, he closed his eyes and rethought of all the evidence he had collected in order to remind himself that he couldn’t ignore what had happened. He had decided to confront Soaru by himself after his conversation with Garry. The lavenderette had started to catch on, but it was likely he just couldn’t fathom the possibility and then there was Amelia, she would be worse, much worse, because she knew Soaru. While he loved how Amelia always looked for the best in just about everyone, he also knew how devastated she would be if Soaru had really done what Luno thought he had.

However, Luno was only human, too. Soaru had been his friend and he didn’t want to believe it either. Sure, he’d connected better with Liam and Dmitri, but unlike the latter he didn’t feel pressured to put Soaru’s happiness before his own – they were equals.

Luno took the memories of their friendship, his anger towards him, and any sympathy he had for Soaru and tried to cram it deep down inside of him. He owed it to everyone, including himself, to be a fair judge, even if he would have to come across as the ‘bad cop’ in the beginning.

Luno opened his eyes and headed outside.

If Soaru heard the screen door open or close, he didn’t give any indication. His arms just continued to look through the lumber shed, sometimes pulling a piece out to stack in his lap with the others.

When he got closer, Luno’s eyes locked onto the bottom of Soaru’s yukata that was stained black. By then, he knew the other teen could hear him approaching, but just wasn’t saying anything. He knelt down next to him, glancing at the five logs placed in the other’s lap before looking at the neatly lined and stacked wood inside the shed. “The fire is dying pretty fast. I’ll grab another five and we should have enough to last a while.”

“You’re probably right,” Soaru quietly remarked. He adjusted the stack in his arms before standing up to go back inside. “I hadn’t realized how long it’s been.”

“Or are you just avoiding us?” Luno questioned and then watched Soaru tense next to him. “Perhaps the reason why is related to where you got that stain on your yukata?”

“I-I…f-forest, it’s just mud from the forest.” He tried to explain, but stopped when Luno reached out to touch part of the stain before drawing back.

Luno stood up and turned to him before raising his hand to make sure Soaru could clearly see the black smudges that now adorned the blond’s fingers. “I think we both know that’s a lie.”

“W-what are you t-talking about?” Soaru asked, taking a hesitant step back.

Luno took a step forward, “Isn’t this house pretty strange? It’s camouflaged so well by the forest, but you knew exactly where it was, you even knew where the firewood was – granted that could have been a lucky guess because most wood is kept in the backyard, but you also knew which room had the fireplace.”

“Garry, Amelia, and I can attest that the substance on the bottom of your yukata is only found at the lake.”

“But we found some in that stream.” Soaru pointed out a bit more confidently.

“While that is true, I learned something not too long ago. This substance is capable of drying out after long periods of time. The fact that it was still sticky meant that it was fresh, just like your yukata.” Soaru watched Luno take out two twigs from his yukata and drag his fingers along the branch, some of the black substance coming off onto them, which he then rubbed together, “Meaning that you were the one to track it into the stream, probably in an attempt to wash it off, but you couldn’t get it all.”

 Luno looked directly at him, “you were there at the lake when Ib fell, weren’t you?”

Soaru held tighter to the wood, furiously shaking his head, “You’re wrong!”

“You just left her there, didn’t you?” Luno’s hands balled into fists at his side, a wave of pure fury prompted him to yell, “you let her die!”

“W-what do you mean? She’s still alive…”

“She – Ib was dead when we got there, I fixed the rose…but she wasn’t breathing... Amelia had to administer CPR…it almost didn’t work” Luno looked down when he talked. It hurt his chest just to remember how lifeless Ib had been and how he had almost lost hope when fixing the rose seemed to do nothing.

The sound of wood crashing to the ground made Luno snap to attention. Before him Soaru had dropped to his knees, eyes wide, and voice fragile when he spoke, “No, that – that can’t be…”

Luno wasn’t prepared for the waterworks that followed, “I-I…it’s all my fault. If I had just looked behind me when I heard that sound…I didn’t know…I couldn’t have known that it – oh G-God, it was I-Ib. S-she was that s-sound…and I…I just left.”

He covered his face and hunched over on his knees, “I’m sorry…why…why didn’t I just look behind me?”

Luno leaned down and touched the other’s shoulder, “Soaru, what happened?”

“W-when that _thing_ pushed me I fell through this doorway and onto the shore further up from the pier. I got up and – and nothing made sense. I was so thirsty, but I couldn’t drink the water—it wouldn’t come off,” Soaru uncovered his face to shakily stare down at his hands as if he could still see the black goo on them. “I wiped it off on the bottom of my yukata, but not all of it came off. I wanted to go back to the festival and forget everything, but then I heard someone scream and I - I thought it was that _thing_ coming after me so I…I ran away.” Soaru took a few shaky breaths before he continued, “I found the stream and tried to wash off some of the lake water, but not all of it would come off. I wandered past this house without realizing it, far out into the forest where I – I saw that _thing_ walking up these red-carpeted stairs into a building. She looked over at me and I ran away again, which is when I found the house, but I didn’t stay long; I just wanted to go back to school. I went back to the lake and wondered around the forest until I finally got to the bridge…I was so relieved to see you all.”

“But then I screwed it up because I was afraid…I even said such awful things to Garry.”

Luno nodded in agreement, “Yeah, you did.”

“Is…is Ib going to be alright?” Soaru asked. He recalled how she looked on the beach, dried blood on her face, the sutures peeking onto her forehead, and how small she had looked wrapped in Garry’s arms, and knew he had played a hand in it because he had left her behind.  

“That’ll depend on us…I haven’t told the others, but there’s a chance she could die again if we don’t hurry up and get out of this place.” Luno cautiously responded. He glanced over at the house before looking back at the other teen. “We should get back inside before that fire dies out.”

“Luno, are you going to tell them about what I did?”

Luno took a moment to look thoughtful before responding, “No, not unless I need too. If you had purposefully left her there I would have. Think of it as my way of apology for what I said to you the other day.”

Soaru stared at him for a moment, flabbergasted, “How do you all manage to stay so strong?”

Luno almost laughed, “Realistically, we’re all terrified, but we end up putting on a brave face in order to protect each other and ourselves.” He walked over to the shed and picked up five pieces of lumber before making his way to the back door, Soaru hurrying to follow after him.

The sitting room had gained one more addition while they were gone. Amelia sat at the end of the chaise lounge folding up Ib’s yukata. “Don’t tell me you actually found clothes that fit her.” Luno said as soon as he took in the scene. While Amelia grinned in triumph, Garry came up behind them with a bag that he handed to her to put Ib’s yukata in before doubling back to take a few of the logs from Soaru to place into the fireplace for the flame’s consumption.

“Thanks for bringing some wood.”

Soaru, who had just finished putting the remaining kindle neatly on the floor by the hearth where Luno had placed his own five pieces, paused as if surprised that Garry had even spoken to him.

“You’re welcome.” Garry gave him a small smile before turning to Amelia as she presented Ib’s new clothing. “The skirt was too long so I had to cut it and I used the obi as a sash to keep it together, but nothing else was too big.”

Garry looked down at Ib, who was now adorned in a plain red skirt that was cut off at her knees and a white long-sleeved shirt. A wave of nostalgia almost crippled him, his vision swimming and replaced Ib with what he could only describe as a younger version of her in a similar outfit lying on the chaise lounge. She couldn’t have been more than nine or ten. He barely noticed himself slide onto the floor, his vision blurring again like an inkblot. He cradled his head with the hand not gripping the edge of the chaise lounge, remembering to breathe as his vision returned to normal, but he was left with the makings of a headache.

“Whoa, Garry, you alright there, buddy?”

“Yeah, just got a little dizzy and I thought I saw something—maybe that water was spiked,” he patted Amelia’s arm in assurance and pointedly ignored the look Luno sent his way.

He refocused on Ib, the girl in front of him, but he couldn’t rid himself of the recognition he felt when he saw that mini-version of Ib.

“I don’t take it you scrounged up any shoes, huh?” Luno directed at Amelia to dissolve the tension.

“Well, there are a few pairs in different sizes, but we’ll have to wait for Ib to try them on when she wakes up to see if they fit.” Amelia gestured to the multiple pairs of shoes she had neatly placed underneath the chaise lounge. “There are some men’s shoes upstairs if you guys want to try them on, but they’re all the same size.”

“We can take a look later, right now I need to tell you all something important.” Luno pulled out a few of the journals he had shown them at the inn. “We need to figure out the secret to getting out of here before Ib wakes up and starts the countdown-“

“What countdown?” Garry interrupted and glanced over at Ib in worry.

“There is a possibility that Ib could die again.” Luno finally admitted. “It’s mentioned in a few of these journals about what happens to those who come back from the lake. When Ib wakes up, we will be battling against time to get out of here before the lake takes Ib back.”

“I-I don’t understand,” Amelia said, looking between everyone in search of an answer. “if it was just going to take her again, then why didn’t Ib stay…dead?”

“Amelia, when I fixed the rose, Ib was still dead. You administered CPR until you resuscitated her. It’s thanks to you that she’s alive now.” Luno pointed out, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder for a moment before withdrawing. “Aside from that, it seems those who come back from the lake are only on borrowed time until they break down and go back.”

“How do you know this and what do you mean by ‘break down?’” Soaru voiced.

In response, Luno grabbed one of the journals that he’d shown Amelia and Garry at the inn, flipped it open to a dog-eared page, and said, “I’ll just read a few of the excerpts. I think all that we want to know are in these journals, but we have to put the pieces together.”

The three nodded at him and sat up attentively in their seats, ready to hear whatever those journals had in store for them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Omakes*  
> 1\. (In a different scenario where Luno went to get firewood and put together that Soaru was a Judas)  
> *Luno slams open the door and looks at Soaru sitting innocently in a wooden chair*  
> Luno: you *in deep demonic voic*  
> *Walks over and bitch slaps Soaru twice with the firewood*
> 
> 2\. (While Luno takes out his sewing kit to fix up Ib)  
> Luno: Bitch I got this, bitch I got it. I got the shit you need.
> 
> Hey guys, sorry that it's taken nearly a year for me to update. I was really busy with my first year of college, working two jobs, etc. I'm going to try to update more, maybe three times a month if able. I'm job hunting now so I do have a bit more time on hand.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his friends go to the lake, Garry reads sad things and solves a silly riddle.

> "Learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else."
> 
> ~ Leonardo Da Vinci
> 
>  

The letters were crabbed and rushed, written in faded ink that alternated between black and gray. The gradient shift of the ink seemed to make the words appear as if they were dying the longer the note went on. Fitting, for as far as Luno knew it was the last note written by Miranda before she succumbed to the lake once again.

_Ian suggested I write out my thoughts to keep sane. He doesn’t – no one understand that I’m not making it up – I did meet a woman standing on the pier across the lake; she’s real, not a dream! That poor woman is lost to “the land of rot.”_

_Even though she scared me, she seemed very lonely. She’s searching for something that she’s lost, but she can’t remember what it is anymore, I think. The way she talked was hard to understand, but I believe I’m starting to figure it out._

_If only her voice would leave my head and these images that plague me. She keeps whispering to me over and over, warning me to never fall asleep again or I’ll end up like her – fractured._

_Miranda_

It was silent when Luno finished. Garry rubbed his face, trying to let the contents of the note sink in. While he couldn’t make sense of this woman Miranda saw at the pier, he had a feeling it played into the “count down” Luno had mentioned. On the other hand, as he listened to Luno read he couldn’t deny that Miranda sounded a bit crazy.

At the same time, Garry couldn’t help but wonder if Miranda’s note was just a part of this “break down” Luno mentioned. Would Ib also experience these seemingly auditory and visual hallucinations like Miranda probably had? The very thought of it made a pit swell inside of his stomach, but he tried to calm down by assuring himself that Luno had read through most of the journals already. There had to be a solution—they just had to piece it together.

“Not to alarm anyone, but this is likely what’s going to happen to Ib after she wakes up. I’m sure you all picked up on Miranda’s instability; however, what I really wanted to draw attention to is the first piece of the puzzle we need to solve in order to save Ib and get out of here—the woman at the pier.” Luno sat down across from the three and put the book at the center so that they could see the page.

“Okay, so Miranda thought she saw some lady at the pier?” Amelia indicated for him to explain the significance of the woman.

“No, it’s not that she _thinks_ she saw this woman, it’s about what _no one_ else saw.” Luno clarified. “Think about it for a moment. Why did no one else but Miranda see her or why didn’t this woman join up with Miranda to escape?”

 It clicked in Garry’s mind, “Because only Miranda could see her. Luno, you insinuated that she died in the lake like Ib and was rescued. D-Do you mean to tell me that Miranda saw this woman while she was dead?”

“Exactly,” Luno stated resolutely, his eyes and tone even and serious. “Miranda’s succumbing to the lake after this is verified in another note, but there is another entry that I want to show you before it that not only contains more details of what happened to those who came back from the lake but is the second clue to the puzzle –”

“Luno, if you already knew all this from reading these beforehand, are you not just wasting time when you already know of a solution?” Soaru cut in, but his words contained no bite.

“Whoa, harsh, Soaru,” Amelia stage whispered non-too-quietly to him.

Soaru didn’t meet her gaze, choosing instead to stare at the corner of the book’s page and give a half-hearted shrug in response.

“No, I see what he means.” Luno took up for him. “To answer you, I have some theories but I thought it would be better to present all the information before discussing them so that we’re all on the same page and can work towards a better solution.”

“That’s how we make just about all huge decisions when we’re together as a group,” Amelia said, finally satisfied when Soaru met her eyes for once, but he didn’t smile back. She wanted to desperately ask him what was wrong, because she knew it wasn’t just the whole situation they were in that was causing him to avoid eye-contact with them, but knew it would have to wait.

“Back on topic, the first piece of the puzzle is this mysterious woman that only Miranda could see for the duration of her death submerged in the lake, do I have that right?” Garry asked, bringing everyone back on task.

Luno confirmed that he was right, prompting Garry to continue, “Then I think another part of the puzzle would be the warning she gives Miranda, that she’d become _‘fractured’_ like her if she fell asleep. Don’t you find it strange that this woman is written as someone who’s lost but caring, warning Miranda, instead of being portrayed as the one driving Miranda to insanity?”

“Huh, you’re right. I never thought of it like that.” Amelia said before reanalyzing the note. “You can tell that Miranda doesn’t want her in her head, but she isn’t written as someone bad or dangerous, just sad.”

“Amelia, Garry, do you both remember Allen’s letter I showed you at the inn?” They nodded. “This is the Miranda that he was looking for. She, like Ib, was saved from the lake, but it’s the aftereffects that worry me and she isn’t the only reported case of this happening to.”

“The voices and hallucinations are what you meant by ‘break down’ I assume?” Soaru asked. Luno nodded, “Yes, those who come back from _The_ _Lake of Sleep_ successfully have been documented as having auditory and visual hallucinations along with remembering their time in this _land of rot_. However, the woman standing on the pier and whispering to them, and looking for something she’s lost, I believe, are things that they really experience, and that it’s a clue to saving them from returning to the lake.”

“Why do they see this woman though and does it hold any merit?” Soaru asked.

“The next passage would better explain that,” Luno stated then flipped to an earlier page in the journal.

_To those of you who become trapped within this forsaken place in the future,_

_Time is of no consequence here, though the setting may be the Nivis Alba of the past, it is only a limbo waiting to be mended. She created this fragment for Cycloptic Smile, likely in the hope that the painting could be made whole again._

_I do not believe anything can be done for those whom have been devoured, but there is hope of saving all of them from their suffering – making Cycloptic Smile whole. I know not what will happen if she is complete, but it all begins at the lake._

_The lake itself is dried up in the present but, as this is far back in time, it still exists within this period. However, the lake is perverted here with a black substance with the same consistency as petroleum and also just as flammable. Out of all the oddities of this space, the lake is the strangest in that it does not contain oil lamps or creatures. Despite the lack of light, the area is visible and the black water reflects nothing._

_It is at that lake where Matthew and I found my brother, Arata, and Florence._

_They were dead. Their skin white, chapped lips a blue hue, and coated in that black substance. The lake had consumed them and taken them from me._

_Florence wasn’t as gone as my brother, she could have been saved, but I begged Matthew to try and save Arata instead. He gave in and treated him first. Once the rose was sewn back together the water dissipated from his body, but Arata wasn’t alive. After an excruciating amount of time, Matthew managed to revive him through CPR._

_Florence was next, but it was already too late. I had discarded her chances at living because I didn’t want to lose my brother. I didn’t know how I would tell Claire, but I had been selfishly thankful that Arata had survived._

_We found a cottage, the very cottage I write in now, to regroup and care for Arata. It was in this very building that I came across the answers that were too late to save us. Everything is connected to this cottage, the origin of Vita from the Legend of Nivis Alba._

_If you are unawares, then I shall break your illusion that the Legend is a mere folk tale. It has been perverted through the years, but the fact is Vita was and continues to be real. She lived in this cottage with her father and his creations._

_It’s within those pages that I found reason to believe that Cycloptic Smile is unwholesome, that she is missing something. I believe it also connects as to why Claire reacted so aggressively to Cycloptic Smile the longer she looked into her eye. It’s likely to do with Vita’s original intent behind the whole painting that was corrupted after it fractured into Cycloptic Smile but, if that is true, I came to wonder if the painting just didn’t fracture into only Cycloptic Smile, but another painting as well._

_If I could find this other painting, the missing half, and make Cycloptic Smile whole again, I had believed that we all could return home._

_While Arata recovered, Matthew and I researched. We found one log written by a “Hal,” who was searching for his friend, Anna. They were thrown into this world as well, but Anna wasn’t like him (or us) – she didn’t have a rose from the beginning. She had been a victim of circumstance. This world became far more dangerous for her because the half-rose she was cursed with couldn’t be repaired._

_Hal’s documents of his findings and thoughts were most helpful. He went further into this “eye” he often referenced and found the “truth of the creatures,” as he called it. Though he never clearly stated it, I believe I have come to understand what he had meant. However, it only dawned on me once it was too late._

_In one of his reports, Hal mentions that he had found proof that there had been others before him – the research Journal of Warren and Ethel.  He recounted that their research and discoveries had furthered his own and once, in his final log, noted that those two had found how to escape and the truth of everything._

_We’ve searched for Warren and Ethel’s journal, but have never found it._

_The last thing I want to recount for you is the truth of what happened._

_When Arata awoke he was stuck on a woman who he had met in the forest who had saved him. I told him that it wasn’t real, that he had been dead, and that it must have been just a dream. He kept insisting it hadn’t been and even told me that Florence had been there and would back him up. When I told him she had died, he seemed to crumple._

_Arata seemed to become distant after that. He often recited phrases that he swore were being whispered to him. We had falsely chalked it up to being his way of coping with what happened. I made the mistake of leaving him alone at the cottage to search for Claire with Matthew._

_I believe that the Truth Hal found at the center of the “eye” is the same one I saw for myself. We had decided to scour the forest for Claire, which is where we found the museum. It was too modern to be from this era and far enough out of the way that it didn’t seem to belong with the village._

_There, at the steps was Cycloptic Smile and Claire. She was attacking the painting and we jumped in to help her. The fight itself is a blur to me now, but I remember being pushed. Matthew and Claire had somehow gotten Cycloptic Smile on the ground in the meantime, which is when everything went wrong._

_I couldn’t see what was going on, but Matthew and Claire started screaming. I will always remember the way Claire screamed at me to run away, the guttural screams, and Cycloptic Smile covering her face._

_They had become the monsters that we’d killed. The Truth Hal must have seen was this, that humans are those monsters that keep apologizing and begging not to be seen. Though I don’t understand why they say these things, I don’t have time to dwell._

_When I arrived at the cottage Arata was gone. I found him standing on the pier, staring up at the starless expanse. Without looking at me he said:_

_“I know why the lake reflects nothing. While she stood on this pier, she was being painted back onto her canvas. She went deep, deep down into the water and fell asleep.” He had looked down at the water then, “The surface of the water won’t ever reflect because she’s lost and can’t find her way back.”_

_“Her body is in the lake, but in a tight spot that’s dark and hard.”_

_I told him that we would find her, that we would get out, and that we should go back. He only told me that his borrowed time was up, that he wasn’t strong enough on his own to survive, and that he was only afraid because this time he knew what would happen once he fell asleep._

_Arata, my baby brother, succumbed to the lake._

_Reuniting both halves of the painting is the only way out, but I don’t know for sure. What I do know is that, had we listened to him sooner, my brother may have survived._

_Please, if your friend has fallen into that lake then you must act quickly. If the painting can be made whole then maybe, just maybe, that friend will survive. I will leave this at the village entrance with the hope that it will be of use someday. Please, find the lost one in the lake. I should try to do it myself, but I’ve come to accept my fate._

_I can no longer return._

_-Hana Sasada_

“That’s…a lot of information to swallow.” Amelia hesitated, rubbing the burn on her right forearm in remembrance of all the monsters, no, _people_ she and Garry had lit on fire back at the bridge. Garry quietly reached over and gently grabbed her hand, stopping her. She took in his downcast eyes and slumped shoulders that carried the same weight of knowing what they had done. Luno kept himself composed though, he too was just as guilty. Before he had read Hana Sasada’s entry, he had also broken a lantern and killed what he now knew to be people.

Ignorance was as good an excuse as any. The trio hadn’t known that what they were doing would cause the fires that killed those people, they could even believe that those monsters were no longer people at all, but it didn't alleviate the guilt they felt.

“Are we inferring that those who die in the lake are haunted by this mysterious woman, who may actually be the other half to _Cycloptic Smile_?” Soaru broke the tense moment, unknowingly reminding the other three that they had more pressing matters to attend to than their own guilt.

“I think it’s not a haunting in the typical sense,” Amelia let go of Garry’s hand to sit up straighter. “Those who fall into the lake see this woman in this _land of rot_ , which sounds an awful lot like purgatory, and…what Luno?”

The blond closed his mouth, but stood up and began to pace back and forth with his arms crossed. “Purgatory is probably closer to the truth. Hana mentioned that _She_ created this fragment of time, a limbo if you will. This land of rot is likely a form of limbo. Think about it, these people who fall into the lake die but where do they go, assuming souls and the like are real, where can they go?”

He whipped around to face them, “Purgatory, _the land of rot_ , where those who have died are gathered because they can’t move on.”

“But this woman may be a painting so how would that work? Would she even have a soul?” Soaru pointed out; perplexed by the strange turn the discussion had taken. Since when did the question of whether or not souls exist play an important role in escaping?

“We all know the story of Nivis Alba, correct?” Luno asked before continuing right along. “Whatever Vita’s father painted became a painting, instilling life within his daughter. Hana mentions here,” he indicated to the passage, “about Vita’s original intent behind the whole painting. Assuming that Vita could use the life instilled within her, she must have created the actual painting behind _Cycloptic Smile_ and its other half—the real painting, and may have even been powerful enough to create a soul for it, for her.”

Garry pointed toward one of the passages himself, tapping his finger against the book once. “Building off that, Arata’s words to his sister say _body_ and that she was being painted back onto her _canvas_. As Luno said, when Vita’s father paints, whatever is being painted becomes an actual painting. If Vita’s creation needed to be repainted again, then wouldn’t that mean she had a solid form?”

“We seem to be inferring quite a bit here.” Soaru sighed, unsure if they would ever be able to find all the answers they sought. “Let’s just keep this simple. Those who die in the lake encounter a woman, who is searching for something. This something is likely her other half, as indicated that _Cycloptic Smile_ is unwholesome and may have fractured into two from an original painting created by Vita. Those brought back from the lake are on a time limit to unite the paintings and/or escape before they die again. While this Warren and Ethel are said to have found out a way to escape, it is not known how without their journal, but Sasada has written that combining the two paintings could be the key to leaving this place. Additionally, the museum is where we’ll likely need to go when we’re ready.”

“That is an impressive summary,” Luno nodded, almost sheepish that he was getting too preoccupied with the finer details. “Keeping it simple might be the best way to stay on task.”

“Okay, so now that we have the outline of the puzzle complete, we need to decide our next step.” Amelia smiled at Soaru before turning her head back to the group, happy to have a clear direction to go in. “Personally, I think we need to find this painting first.”

The three males nodded in acknowledgment. Finding the missing painting would allow them to mobilize more quickly in the event that _Cycloptic Smile_ came looking for them at the cottage or in the event that they could eliminate a more time consuming event before if not only a bit after Ib woke up.

“But we can’t just focus on finding the painting, that would leave Ib alone and it wouldn’t be efficient. Navigating the lake water is a two man job, but we also need someone to watch Ib and for someone to start analyzing some of these notes.” Luno picked the journal up from the floor and slightly waved it. “Soaru mentioned to me earlier that he’s been to the museum, so we could have him try and indicate its location on a map, even if only the general area.”

“Mark the entries and give them to Garry, he’ll stay here, while we go back to the lake.” Amelia looked through the journals and papers Luno had accumulated and pulled out the map Luno had shown her and Garry back at the inn, a journal, and a pen. Ignoring Garry’s protests, she started jotting down key clues to the painting’s whereabouts from Hana’s entry and simply said, “Garry, shut up. It’s obvious that you’re the best choice to stay here and _protect_ Ib.”

Garry didn’t like being given the easier task. He knew how straining it was physically to row through the lake and it didn’t sit well that he was essentially being asked to sit this one out.

Amelia didn’t bat an eye when she stated, “we both know how grueling it was rowing earlier. While I may be the strongest physically, you’re quicker on your feet. We can’t afford to have both of us exhausted, especially if something goes wrong. I need Luno for his muscle and brain, along with Soaru, who we also need to start writing down anything he remembers about the path he took to the museum. This map doesn’t cover the lake area, but the back is clear enough for notes.”

She closed the journal. “Garry, if anything were to happen while we were gone, I have no doubt that you would be able to protect both yourself and Ib. You’re fast on your feet and I know you’re strong, but, mostly, I just want the first person Ib sees to be you.”

His mouth opened a little without his consent, air flowing past his teeth in one small airy gasp that only he heard. He stared at Amelia’s face when she turned, tan skin glowing but the smile that usually split her face was small and prettier than normal, serene but confident. It crossed Garry’s mind that Amelia’s expression was something he’d never thought she could do. He had seen her solemn and teary, panicked and puzzled, smiling and boisterous, but this was something he couldn’t quite place. Garry could have laughed, it almost sounded like she was the hostile mother-in-law that was finally allowing him to marry her daughter or, at the least, it seemed like an acknowledgement that she knew about his revelation on some level. Whatever it was, Garry was sure that even Luno was surprised.

He cast a small glance at Luno and nodded to himself, yup, even Luno was caught off guard.

Amelia, thinking Garry nodded his consent to stay, moved to grab the baseball bat. “Alright, now that that’s decided, let’s gear up and go!”

Luno picked up his jaw and ran a hand through his hair while looking slightly sheepish. “Y-Yeah, let me just set up Garry with some of these entries to read.”

“So, you and Amelia…” Garry trailed off, his voice low enough for only Luno to hear. He knew from the moment Ib made the excuse to leave the two alone at the festival that something had to be up. Ib wasn’t dense with things like that.

“Are you okay?” Garry worriedly asked when Luno nearly dropped the journal.

“Who, me? Yeah, I mean, it’s not obvious, right? Like you and Ib obvious?” Garry gave his friend a strange look when the blond let out a small, airy laugh. “Uh, not sure what you’re implying, but we can talk about you and Amelia after we get out of all this…now probably isn’t the best time.”

“I suppose not, especially since there is nothing going on between us.” Garry only nodded, attaching a “uh-huh” as Luno was noticeably flustered. The blond took a few deep breaths and continued to dog-tag an entry before handing the journal to Garry.

When Luno turned to face Amelia and Soaru he was composed. He picked up the claw hammer and called back, “Try to see if any of them can tell us about Warren and Ethel’s journal or how to unite this mysterious painting with _Cycloptic Smile_. You probably shouldn’t wander too far from the cottage if you need to go outside for more firewood or something else. If something happens, there’s another baseball bat and you know where to find us.”

Garry mocked saluted. “If you need help, you know where I am. Be careful.”

When he heard the front door close, Garry turned to the journal in his hands and opened one of the dog-eared pages. He had his own work to do.

 

* * *

 

 

The crackling of the logs as they burned filled the room, but Garry barely noticed. He had gone over Hana Sasada’s entry again and noticed a few sections that stuck out to him in particular. The first was about how Claire had acted aggressively toward _Cycloptic Smile_ the longer she looked into her eye and how it probably had something to do with Vita’s intent behind the original painting. If this painting did split into that woman in the _land of rot_ and _Cycloptic Smile_ , and the one was looking for her missing half (the thing she had lost but couldn’t remember), was the painting that attacked them also missing something?

His mouth dipped into a confused frown, unsure if the one-eyed painting was really missing something. Surely, her other half was missing, but only the one without a solid form seemed to be looking. _Cycloptic Smile_ more or less just seemed to not want anyone to look at her, and the longer anyone looks the more aggressive and deadly things became.

His tapping fingers paused just above the page, an idea starting to take form. Earlier, it had become apparent that his fear and anger were directly correlated with how long he stared at _Cycloptic_ Smile, including Amelia’s aggression that Claire apparently shared to some degree. However, when he and Luno had blocked the painting from Amelia’s view the effect lessened, but what did the painting gain by provoking Amelia’s bloodlust?

Matthew and Claire had turned into monsters and the painting hid her face, was there a connection? What about what the monsters keep repeating, the apologies that they didn’t mean to look—

_‘Wait, if Cyloptic Smile heightened our aggression the longer we stared at her and this Truth of the Monsters that Hana saw was only in the presence of Cycloptic Smile…then does she gain a means of defeating us? Maybe, but she’s strong enough on her own. It also doesn’t explain the monsters’ apologies for looking at her. Unless there’s something about her that she doesn’t want us to see,’_ Garry gripped the journal tighter, his fingers fidgeting at the upper right corner. _‘Perhaps what she’s missing is something physical in addition to her other half, but she had all her fingers and limbs from what I remember of that walking nightmare. She does only have one eye, but I’m not sure if that’s intentional or not.’_

Garry tried to recall if the painting had a second eye-socket, but could only remember that she had a lot of hair on the left side of her face and that her single eye was pretty big. He shivered in the heat of the fire as he remembered the painting in full again, “Great, more nightmares.”

The tall lavenderette stood up and stretched before rifling through some of the items that Luno left behind before coming across a pen. After hunkering back down, Garry ripped out a blank sheet of paper from the back of the journal and wrote: _Cycloptic Smile increases aggression for unknown reasons and may turn people into the monsters, perhaps as a result of seeing something she’s physically missing? Does she have a left eye? Note: Very strong. Don’t stare._

The next peculiar passage was _“it is only a limbo waiting to be mended. She created this fragment for Cycloptic Smile, likely in the hope that the painting could be made whole again.”_ Disregarding souls and the like, it suddenly dawned on him that reuniting the paintings to make them whole again was likely the best option for escaping. If _She_ , Vita or whoever, made that space for _Cycloptic Smile_ to be made whole, then wouldn’t it end if that purpose was fulfilled? Garry nodded to himself before moving onto the next passage.

Soaru was in the greatest danger out of all of them. He wasn’t an original Alice, so he likely had a half-rose that couldn’t be repaired if he was critically injured. Garry reasoned that with the growing excitement and flurry of conversation earlier it likely hadn’t dawned on the others yet that Soaru would need to be extremely careful in any potentially dangerous situations that could arise. He added _‘Soaru. Half-rose. Tell others to watch out for him; could die if not careful.’_

Garry flipped to another dog-tagged page and began to read the short note, the frown on his face etching deeper into his face by the end.

_Though we started off with four, only I am left now._

_Ian stared too long into the abyss and became one of those monsters._

_Miranda succumbed to the lake again._

_Allen died from his injuries after handing me some book._

_He told me he found it inside the museum and then he told me to keep it safe,_

_And that this book was guaranteed to break the chain for those who’d be here in the future._

_Due to the importance of this book, I can say that it’s right around the cottage but I’ll leave its location like this:_

_“What does a snake do with its skin?”_

_Pray that you all make it out alive. Being the only one left is lonely._

_-Eren_

The sigh escaped him before he could reel it in, but, seriously, all the entries had been depressing thus far. People were dying or being turned into monsters, though that probably was its own kind of death. The only shred of hope for these people that he had was thanks to Hana’s note that uniting the paintings would likely free all those who were _“devoured.”_

Garry reread the part about Ian and thickly underlined _Don’t stare_ in his notes before refocusing on the mysterious book the note mentioned. He vaguely wondered if it could be Warren and Ethel’s journal, but not even Hana was able to find it. However, that could also depend on who arrived first. While not a pleasant thought, Garry knew that he would be doing himself a favour if he made a timeline. It wouldn’t even be too difficult. Warren and Ethel were obviously the first documented people, Hal and Anna likely came next thanks to Hana’s entry that detailed how Hal had based much on his theories off Warren and Ethel’s research journal, but Hana’s group likely came next. While it was possible that Miranda, Allen, Ian, and Eren came before Hana, the girl had made no note of them in her entry. Additionally, wouldn’t Hana have mentioned the book being hidden via riddle rather than write that they couldn’t find it? Garry didn’t fully know where Luno got the journal from, but he doubted Hana came after Miranda. As a bonus, the journal pages were likely in order, so there was always that.

Garry rolled his eyes at his own musings and refocused on the clue Eren  left about the location of the mysterious book from the museum, which seemed like the end of the road. They would reunite the painting or something and then go back to Nivis Alba…Garry didn’t dare add that they would only go back to prepare for the next battle. From the note, it seemed like the book was pretty close by.

He cast a glance over to the fireplace and reasoned that he needed to grab some more firewood. The ten logs Soaru and Luno had collectively brought in were almost gone. He paused, looking at Ib’s sleeping face and was torn. In no way did he want to leave Ib alone, but he also just wanted to grab some more kindle and take a quick peek around. Garry reasoned he could always see if the house had a set of keys and lock the doors.

Getting to his feet, Garry looked around the room fruitlessly before slipping into the hallway. Keeping an ear out for any noise, he got all the way to the kitchen but still didn’t have any luck. He gazed out into the yard, specifically at the woodshed before realization dawned on him. He hesitated at the screen door. There was no way the answer to the riddle was shed, as in the woodshed. That would be too easy.

The grass crunched under his sandals. Garry reasoned that it wouldn’t hurt to check and, even if he was wrong, no one was around to see it. Time was metaphorically ticking, though, so the trip would have to be a quick one.

The woodshed was low and covered by a small thatched roof overrun by ivy. _‘If I were hiding a book in a shed on a short amount of time, where would I put it?’_ Garry pondered as his eyes swept over the contents of the shed, _‘Likely far in the back or between a few logs.’_

On his knees, Garry stretched his right arm into the back of the shed while steadying himself with his other hand on the roof. The sensation of chopped, rugged wood against his face was certainly _not_ welcome, even more so when he pressed himself harder against the lumber to reach further down the back.

Just as he was going to give up his pinky finger gently brushed against something cold but flat and thin—paper.

The woodchips chaffing against Garry’s face didn’t feel so painful anymore as he fervently groped for the paper, withdrawing to pull out some of the lumber for easier access, and finally pulled out a leather bound journal. It looked very old with extensive wear and tear. The paper itself was yellowed from age, crinkled and splattered with what looked to Garry like water marks. The writing was rather neat, though, in dutiful cursive that he almost had a hard time reading. Though damaged and missing some information the inside cover, in the same impeccable cursive, read:

_Folklore Research Journal XXX: The Legend of Nivis Alba_

_Head Researcher, Warren Fau-_

_Assistant, Ethel C-_

Garry closed the book and jumped up in excitement. There was no way he was going to look a gift horse in the mouth, nope. Finding the journal was a blessing and he needed to get back and look through it straightaway. Grabbing an armful of lumber, he hurried back into the cottage.

After chucking a few logs into the pit, he settled down on the floor and reopened the journal. The excitement coursing through his body nearly caused him to drop the book due to his shaking. Trying to calm himself down again, he folded his legs and propped the journals against them. Looking at the cover and first page, Garry noticed something he hadn’t before—words were damaged and scribbled out, as if something or someone didn’t want anyone to read them. Anxiety starting at the back of his throat, he leafed through the pages.

His eyes widened in shock and a small, airy sound close to a hiss left his mouth the further he perused the pages. Aside from the normal wear and fading, pages were scribbled out and some were just gone altogether—ripped remains the only trace of their existence. Garry cursed under his breath in exasperation. What was he going to do now? Gritting his teeth, he flipped towards the last half of the book. _‘Information about their escape from here would be more towards the back.’_

Opening to the last entry, Garry breathed a sigh of relief—it was undamaged, for the most part. The water marks were more prominent and it struck him as odd. The droplets had smudged the ink in various places instead of just being a part of the paper aging itself. Suspicion crept through him and was confirmed when he realized that, unlike the other entries he had leafed through, the handwriting was different. The cursive was still impeccable, but it looked a bit more rushed with the letters slanting right and the cramped paragraphs.

_Day: Unknown_

_Warren, I cannot begin to apologize to you or tell you all that I want to say for it would take hours, perhaps even days to communicate. There is so much that I wish to convey to you, but time is now finite and mine has come to an end._

Pausing in his reading, Garry briefly flipped back to the inside cover and realized it was Ethel who was writing. He recalled Eren’s last entry and swallowed, the same feeling of sadness starting at the back of his head. If Ethel was writing, what had happened to Warren? Did he die and this was Ethel’s final…Garry shook his head. Hana’s entry had mentioned that these two had found a way out of this nightmare, so that would mean they were still alive to see it through…he hoped.

_Though you may never read this, I want you to know that I have always loved you dearly. I have been your friend and assistant for so long that I can no longer recall a time when you were not in my life. Warren, I am sorrier than you can ever imagine that I forced you to investigate this legend. Had I not been so stubborn and simply listened to you then none of this would have happened, but the voice tells me that I am mistaken._

_We were fated to be the first._

_Do you remember the voice on the twelfth day, not Ida’s but the other? It speaks to me now and has offered a solution. You will not like it. I have been your partner for years, which is why I dare not tell you until I know you shall be too late to stop me. We are unable to take on Cycloptic Smile, Warren._

_We did well in discovering that Cycloptic Smile was originally a whole painting that was created by Vita and, as a by-product, became human. The toll of creating life was too much a strain on Vita and she fell ill. Her father, using his ability to take the life of an actual living thing by painting it, saved his daughter by repainting her creation. However, the original’s human body perished in the lake before the whole transfer, which caused a split in the painting: Cycloptic Smile and ----. While the latter is trapped in the lake with her body, searching for herself, Cycloptic Smile is free to roam and defies the rules of the Gallery due to the limbo her original body is in. The effect Cycloptic Smile had on us is a perverse form of her original character, and that she is missing a piece of her that she is self-conscious of._

_Despite her openly staring at others, the painting only hates being stared out when what she lacks is seen, which triggers her ability to create monsters out of humans. When not seen, she encourages others to stare in order to manipulate their resentment and anger to her advantage—seeing what she lacks. While I found it contradictory, you pointed out the attraction and repulsion Cycloptic Smile must feel. To be afraid of having her deformity seen while also wanting it to be seen is the pitiful cycle she finds herself subjected to._

_The voice has proven that we are unable to fight against her and win—we cannot reach the other painting. While we know of her body in the lake, we are unable to locate it in a timely fashion. Cycloptic Smile will come for us before then, Warren. The spools of thread are gone, meaning we can only run or our deaths shall be permanent. Time is a luxury we simply do not have._

_The Guardian, as it called itself, is in need of a human body for the future harbingers that will put an end to everything.  Your dream of Vita, her appearance forgettable, telling you her name isn’t real is true—her name will be decided centuries from now._

_While I know you shall try to stop me, I have decided to take the deal: my body and soul in exchange for your escape._

_I am sorry, but at least you finally got your Year Walk…_

_It may be selfish of me, but I love you and my only regret is that I did not tell you sooner._

_Goodbye._

Neither the suffocating heat in his face nor the flat pit sound of thick droplets against the page had torn Garry away from the line. He kept rereading that line, _Goodbye_ over and over with the reality slowly sinking in despite how he already subconsciously understood that her _Goodbye_ truly and definitely meant forever.

His gray eyes remained on the page. How had things become like this? He had known it was likely going to be sad, but not _that_ sad. The question of whether or not Warren ever got to read Ethel’s confession popped into his head uninvited. Did it matter? In the grand scheme of things, was Warren reading Ethel’s final words important enough to have an effect…Garry admittedly didn’t know, but he desperately wanted to believe it had. Call him a sap or a hopeless romantic, but things like this really got to him, in part because if he were to die at that very moment what regrets would he have—not telling his sister he loved her, not making an impression on the world, not living long enough, not confessing to the person he liked—and it honestly scared him.

Garry cried harder, realizing he had _tons_ of things he would regret not doing if he died. Did Ethel feel the same? Was her life, reduced to a mere decision of choosing between their deaths or just hers, full of regrets ranging from things like not telling her family she loved them one last time to not eating at a new cake shop? The fear she must have felt, knowing she would surely die, and the pain of knowing she couldn’t do anything about it. The sacrifice Ethel made to make sure Warren lived was so beautiful, but so tragic. It was too tragic. If Warren did read her entry, Garry couldn’t begin to imagine the emotions he must have felt, but he could imagine the man running regardless of reciprocating her feelings. He would run and run while desperately hoping against the odds that he wasn’t too late—

Arms wrapped around his shoulders in an embrace and warmth emitted from the face pressed against his shoulder. A soft hand crossed over to gently wipe away a salty streak on his right cheek. “Don’t cry, Garry” it was soft and silvery, slightly accented from sleep, and Garry leaned into the warmth of her palm.

Gently cupping the hand on his face, Garry turned his head a fraction to look down into her ruby coloured eyes. The left side of her face was pressed into his shoulder, but she was looking up at him, which brought a smile to the corners of his mouth.

“I won’t, now that you’re back.” Her brow creased in confusion before relaxing. They didn’t speak until Ib turned her eyes to the journal.

“Was it…sad?” Ib asked. Garry gave a faint nod in response. He removed his hand from hers and she moved the appendage back to his shoulder. Content in the affection and worry, Garry didn’t point it out. Though the countdown was on, he just wanted to relish in the moment for a little longer.

“Soaru’s alright, shaken, but he’s with Amelia and Luno right now down at the lake. We’re trying to find the other half of _Cycloptic Smile_ in order to reunite the paintings so we can escape…we have a decent idea on what to do after, but we’re on borrowed time now…” His words caught in his throat, not wanting to say anything about her state before waking up. “We, uh, found you in the lake and…are you in any pain? Do you feel unwell or sick?”

Ib shook her head. “There’s a slight throbbing—“ Garry reached to stop her from touching the stitches but was too late. Feeling the grooves and thread, Ib traced the wound with her index finger before resting on the chaise lounge.

She subtly swallowed, but due to their close proximity Garry clearly heard it.

“…Did I die?”

Garry looked down at the page, his eyes catching _Goodbye_ , again when he choked out “yes.”

“Oh.”

Silence permeated the room.

Garry didn’t want to explain that Luno’s fixing of her rose hadn’t been enough or that Amelia had to administer CPR. They knew the reality of how dead Ib had been and it scared them, but Ib didn’t need to know the scope yet if at all. The last thing Garry ever wanted to do was scare her. He almost kept it to himself, but wondered if he was doing the right thing by keeping it from her. If it were him, would he want to know?

“You were dead…dead. Luno fixed the rose and Amelia administered CPR but…it took a while for you to breathe…” Garry looked over at her and regretted his decision to not keep it to himself.

Fat tears poured from her ducts and her bottom lip trembled. Her arms unwound from Garry and she wiped at her face in an attempt to stop herself just before a sob broke free. Instinctively, Garry pulled Ib into his lap and gently pressed her face into his chest while his other hand was around her waist. “Shhh, it’s okay, you’re alive, we’re all alive.” He whispered in what he hoped was soothing. He repeated it a few more times, running a hand through her hair.

The knuckle white grip on his yukata relaxed, the hot tears on his collar bone stopped falling, and Ib’s sobs slowed into sniffles. “I’m sorry,” Her voice caught when she hiccupped. She peeked up at him, ashamed for turning into a mess but, most of all, for dying.

“It wasn’t your fault.” His voice was firm. “You’re alive, and that’s what matters most.”

Ib nodded into his chest.

They stayed like that for a minute as Ib collected herself. Thinking rationally, she should get caught up on the important things that had happened while she was…unconscious and help Garry in whatever he was doing. The book he’d cried into earlier was pressed against the bottom of her thigh—surely a good place to start.

“Garry, please bring me up to date on what’s happened.” The lavenderette nodded, not bothering to argue with her about resting when she looked so serious.

“Do you remember anything from the time you…out?” Both avoided using the word _dead_.

“Yes, the painting you mentioned in the lake, do you mean Smile?” Garry gave her a puzzled look. “Who?”

“She’s lost in the land of rot, looking for what she has not.” Garry did not like the sudden faraway look Ib got in her eyes when she talked about her. “Because she couldn’t remember her own name, I called her Smile. She never once stopped smiling, either, not even when she tried to take my eyes…huh, Smile and _Cycloptic Smile_ have the whole smiling thing in common.”

“Wait, what?” Garry screeched as he grabbed onto her shoulders and stared more intently at her face to make sure she wasn’t missing anything.

“Ah, don’t worry, we’re friends now.” Her smile put him a little more at ease, but he still wasn’t so certain. “Really?”

“Yes,” Ib nodded. “I’ve always hated my eyes and she’s always hated her empty eye socket. Though forceful, Smile helped me to realize that I shouldn’t take them for granted…” It was almost awkward to talk about how much she used to hate her eye colour now. It seemed so trivial, though Ib knew a lot of it was a complex built off others’ avoidance of her. Ib nodded to herself, she would just have to be more confident in herself and understand that not everyone would be so accepting.

“I think she…saved me.”

“I…don’t really understand, but she’s not a bad person if she helped you.” Garry smiled at her. “When they find her painting in the lake, we’ll figure a way to reunite the paintings into the one Vita originally created, and then get out of here. Oh, you wouldn’t know, but there were others before us—a number of them, actually. Luno has a number of journals from those who were stuck here that gave us clues on how to get out of here. I found the research journal of Warren and Ethel out by the shed thanks to one of the entries. These two were the first ones ever here and managed to find an alternative escape route.”

His voice died down and became somber. “I thought I could find out what it was, just in case we needed a Plan B, but…most of the pages are damaged and things are crossed out. The last page…their escape was a onetime thing and…”

Ib picked up the journal, still open to the page, and read through it. It made sense why Garry was so upset earlier and Ib wondered if Ethel was in limbo like she had been. Had she been one of the lights in the water in the land of rot? She shivered and turned back to the journal when she read something that shocked her.

Ib flipped the page, not wanting to see it anymore, but pasted onto the back cover was indisputable proof of what she feared—a photograph of Warren and Ethel.

Though younger in the monochrome photo, Ib would recognize the woman with her small eyes and signature hair-bun anywhere. Turning to the last page again, Ib reread the last two lines:

_Goodbye._

_-Ethel Creo_

As she opened her mouth to tell Garry about what she had discovered, the distinct sound of a door being slammed opened thundered throughout the cottage. The pounding of footfalls had the two tense and nervous for whatever or whoever was about to turn the corner. Garry held tighter to Ib protectively, briefly sweeping the room for alternative escape routes.

“Pack up, we gotta go!” Amelia’s voice entered the room before she did. Hair fell into her face and she visibly looked panicked. “Sorry to interrupt snuggle time, but we have to go _now_.”

The two bolted up from the floor. After a few steps Ib’s legs gave out on her and she fell back onto the chaise lounge. “Ib!” Garry and Amelia called, hurrying to make sure she was alright.

Though thankful for their worry, Ib couldn’t help feeling bad. “I’m okay; I just got up too fast.”

Amelia mirrored Garry’s worried frown. Without saying anything, Garry quickly shoved the journal into the bag with Ib’s yukata and handed it off to Amelia, who stuffed a few other items into it, before walking back over to Ib.

“Are you able to stand?”

She stood up and took a few steps and then a few quicker steps before nodding. Garry and Amelia shared another informative look, uncertain if Ib was truly up to running or just pushing herself. “Ib,” Amelia started as they all headed towards the backdoor where Soaru and Luno were waiting for them. “If you get tired or can’t run anymore, promise me you’ll tell one of us—we can’t lose you again.”

Ib briefly looked away, guilty that she had been caught, before looking at both of them and resolutely said, “I will.” She did not want to trouble them anymore than she had and, if it meant admitting when she felt weak, would do it if only to put them at ease, “I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Omakes*  
> 1\. Angelic Smile  
> (After seeing Amelia smiling)  
> Garry about Luno: If he wasn’t in deep before, he definitely is now.  
> Soaru: He’s got it bad.  
> 2\. Oblivious  
> “So, you and Amelia…” Garry trailed off. He knew from the moment Ib made the excuse to leave the two alone at the festival that something had to be up. Ib wasn’t dense with things like that.  
> *Amelia and Luno and angels burst into tears at the irony, even Soaru cries though he doesn’t know why*  
> 3\. Garry Pop Culture References 2.0  
> (When Amelia busts open the door and tells Ib & Garry they have to leave)  
> Garry: Gotta go fast   
> Amelia: Did you jus-NEVER MIND WE GOTTA GO  
> Voice in the background chimes: FAST
> 
> *Trivia: Soaru is a character I found myself truly appreciating this chapter. He focuses on the bigger picture, how to get out, rather than sweating the tiny details in tough situations.
> 
> Yeah, so the whole trying to update multiple times a month didn’t pan out. The first half of this chapter was finished soon after my last update and I was going to post it, but I thought it was too short (last chapter was shorter than the chapters I’ve been putting out for this arc). I’m rather disappointed in myself about not updating, but it’s my own fault for not realizing that I’m a shit updater and for not knowing my own limit. That being said, I am going to try and have the next chapter out really soon since I plan to have it be the last chapter dedicated to this arc.   
> While part of me is relieved that this arc is coming to a close, I’m so nervous about the next one because I’m not exactly sold on what I want to do with it just yet. I have a couple more characters that are going to finally be introduced outside of being briefly mentioned or featured back in the group scenes when everyone was chill with each other.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Soaru gets some development.

> “We know what we are, but not what we may be.”
> 
> William Shakespeare

 

Luno tucked the painting under his arm again, glancing toward the front gate to scan for _Cycloptic Smile_. Soaru looked again at the backdoor, wishing Amelia and the others would hurry so they could leave. He had begun to doubt himself. He had been so terrified and had just been blindly running when he had stumbled upon the museum. He wasn’t confident that he could retrace his steps.

He glanced around the lawn, which was coated in an army of muted green weeds and domed yarrow plants. The woodshed looked messier than he remembered it being when they left, and the stump adjacent to it looked rather menacing with its jagged scars, likely from an axe of some sort. Soaru turned back to the door, willing the other three to appear, but it remained closed.

“Hey, take this.” Soaru turned back to Luno, surprised to see him holding out a knife.

“Where…did you get that?” Soaru held back a sarcastic addition.

“Amelia picked it up from some farm house her and Garry looted.” He gestured again for Soaru to take, but when he didn’t Luno bite back a sigh. “Listen, this is only in case of emergency. If…we get into an altercation that we can’t run from…stay back. Out of all of us, you have a lower chance of surviving.”

Soaru’s eyes widened, “Excuse me?”

“Hey, I’m not saying you can’t fight, but here the rules are different. All of us have roses, see,” Luno moved aside his scarf so that the patchwork lavender rose on the upper hemline of his yukata was exposed. “We can repair these to fix most of our injuries, but you’re like Anna—a half-rose.”

“If I get injured, I cannot lessen the damage or recover.” Soaru summarized, trying to hide his audible gulp.

Luno looked at him. “We should locate your rose and have you avoid bearing that side to the enemy at all costs.”

“R-Right,” Soaru stated before taking the blade Luno had still been holding out to him. Luno looked over the navy yukata and spotted the faded, patchwork peach rose on the hem of Soaru’s left shoulder. It was hidden underneath the gray haori and Luno was grateful for that small miracle. Amelia, Garry, and even Ib all had roses that were out in the open and easier to spot.

Luno relayed his finding to Soaru, who stared in silence at the peach coloured rose on his clothing. And Luno almost wanted to reach out and assure him that it would all be fine. After they left (and yes, they would most certainly escape), Soaru would not have to live in worry of being an Alice. He could pretend none of this had happened, like waking from a bad dream.

But Luno couldn’t. Neither could Ib, Amelia, nor Garry.

He almost felt bitter at Soaru’s luck. Despite Soaru being _Cycloptic Smile’s_ target, none of them had been given the option to just leave it all behind. Honestly, Luno knew it was his own fault that he got wrapped up in this mess in the first place. He had followed Amelia in after Ib and Garry, and while he pretended to handle it all with grace and poise, he had been absolutely terrified. While he had been down in that cavern with Amelia, it meant to the world to him that Ib had come back to save them.

Sure, he felt guilty that Soaru had been dragged into this twisted freak show. And, yeah, it was probably pretty low of him to be jealous. Luno was sure that, regardless of if he had followed Amelia in or not, that Ib and Garry would always pursue the Gallery. It appeared to him that they were connected to it.

The backdoor swung open, and the two turned to look, surprised when Ib appeared in the doorframe behind Amelia with Garry bringing up the rear. Ib slanted her eyes in the dim lighting, but oddly placed her hand over her eyes as if were sunny. Luno didn’t think too much of it, his observation interrupted by Amelia and Garry bounding over to him and Soaru, who remained quietly observing Ib.

“I found Ethel and Warren’s journal,” Garry started, his face drooping as he added “but most of the pages were damaged or crossed out. I did manage to gleam that escape route B is a no go.”

Luno’s eyes narrowed, and he nodded, “I was afraid of that. No matter, we’ll just have to make sure our original plan works. Was there anything else?”

Ib looked over the yard, her hands going back to hang at her sides, as she walked down the remaining porch steps. Soaru watched her suddenly become still, staring passed him. He followed her line of sight to the stump by the woodshed.

Garry nodded, “ _Cycloptic Smile_ may have a physical deformity that, upon seeing, transforms people into those creatures. I think her left eye might be what’s missing, aside from her other half obviously.”

Amelia looked back towards the front gate, bouncing on the balls of her feet in anticipation.

Ib was still staring at the stump when she stepped forward, her foot unevenly landing on a stone. She broke eye contact to stare at the rock, bending down to pick it up and examine it in her hand. To Soaru the stone looked similar to the ones his father used to edge his garden.

“If we stare too long at her deformity, we’ll end up turning.” Garry concluded.

Garry, Amelia, and Luno looked at each other silently, conveying something Soaru and Ib were too distracted to notice.

“Soaru’s rose is on the hem of his left shoulder, under the haori.” Luno finally said. Amelia and Garry looked rather relieved, their shoulders slightly less tense. “It’ll be dangerous if he gets hurt.”

“She’s not up to snuff either,” Amelia peered around at the front gate again, but glanced briefly toward Ib. “I don’t know if she’s hiding her pain or if she’s numb.”

“Let’s pray its numbness.” Luno finished.

Soaru started to walk over to Ib, who was now crouching – hands deep – inside a large nest of weeds. She pushed the plants aside, reaching further back. He stopped. What was he supposed to say to her? ‘Hey, I’m the dude who left you to die, no hard feelings, right?’ Garry had probably told her about what he had done. She probably hated him, not that he could blame her.

Ib turned, feeling his presence. When he flinched back she dropped her gaze. It still hurt, she knew it would, but she wouldn’t let his fear – or anyone else’s – of her eyes get to her.

Soaru looked down at her guiltily. Ib didn’t even want to look at him. He wasn’t expecting that rejection to hurt him so much. Yes, he wasn’t the most talkative of their mutual friends, but he had only been wary of her and Garry like he was with all new people. Ib hadn’t seemed too talkative either, preferring to watch Amelia and Gillian tease Garry and contributing only when addressed. Honestly, if he hadn’t been so intimidated by her eyes, he would have found her silent companionship comforting.

Soaru quickly glanced over at Garry, the giant of the group, before staring down at a daisy. He had judged Garry as being scary when he first saw him, but had braved through their first encounter, intent on never talking to him again. But then Amelia just had to befriend Ib, who invited Garry. It had been awful. Ib with her red eyes and Garry with his staggering height and shabby coat. _A monster couple_ , he had thought.

And he had been right. Amelia and Luno were lured away, and it had only taken a day before they started to act different—secretive. Soaru wouldn’t have even cared if there hadn’t been this overwhelming distance he felt between himself and them.

Soaru didn’t want to be left behind again.

He had just wanted to confront them about the sudden distance. And he had known that Dmitri went too far when he called Amelia a whore and told Ib her eyes were creepy. He had been shocked then, but he never said a word. He had always had the same thought about Ib, but never voiced it. He let his fear get the better of him and lashed out, hurting his friends before they could hurt him. But it amounted to nothing. Luno still hurt him, calling him out about his father. At that time, Soaru had wanted to snap at him but it haunted him late into the witching hour for nights. He had comforted himself with the fact that Luno was an orphan, abandoned by his parents and that he wouldn’t understand.

But it still hurt. Seeing them all together, laughing and talking as if the fight never happened.

And he kept piling up his excuses. Luno had a hard time abandoning people. He was just following Amelia to look after her. He would come back. Amelia was the newbie before Ib and Garry; she knew what it was like to be knew. Her curiosity would subside and she’d come back, too. Garry and Ib could not be that interesting; they couldn’t be worth ending their friendship for.

And then he saw a glimpse into their secret. _Cycloptic Smile_ was an abomination. Luno and Amelia had been dragged into this unwillingly. Garry and Ib were to blame for it. For everything. That had been clear to him while running through the forest.

But…he was wrong again.

_“I wish I'd have never met you – no, that you'd never existed in the first place!"_

Luno had actually hit him for that. Even Amelia, one of the first friends he had made, had threatened him. But Garry hadn’t said anything to him.

And…he had let Ib die. Luno hadn’t told anyone else, just like he said he wouldn’t. Which meant Garry didn’t know…that Ib didn’t know.

 “Look,” he blinked in shock, looking at Ib. Her hands were still deep in the tall yarrow, but she was creating a small opening by pushing them aside. Ib did not meet his eyes, staying still in her crouched position.

Tentatively, Soaru took a few steps closer and crouched as well, peering into the dim hole Ib had made. He could make out more stones at the base, tangled in the weeds, but he was unsure of what he was supposed to be seeing. There were overgrown blades of grass, more yarrow, and long brittle sticks. Beyond those sticks was a sprout of colour, and he unconsciously leaned closer, reaching out his hand to touch one…to confirm the red and yellow roses were real.

“Don’t, there are thorns.” Ib warned. Soaru retracted his hand, looking over at her.

She didn’t know what he had done.

“Hey, what’cha guys looking at?” Amelia called out.

“Flowers,” Soaru hurriedly supplied as he stood up. Ib nodded in confirmation, following his example.

“We need to get going,” Garry stated as he walked over. “ _Cycloptic Smile_ wasn’t far behind you, right?”

“Yeah,” Luno answered as the group started to walk towards the forest opposite from the gate. “Soaru, you’ll be leading. Garry, here, these are the landmarks Soaru remembered seeing. You’ll be helping him to spot them.” He handed Garry the map, the back of which contained the notes.

“He wrote them in order to the best of his knowledge but, if he got any of the order mixed up, it’ll be up to us to spot it.”

“Right,” Garry nodded as he read over the notes.

Soaru and Garry took to the front as Amelia and Luno corralled Ib in-between them. But she remained staring back at the stump as they started to head into the forest.

Amelia paused, “Ib, what is it?”

The others stopped and looked over, following Ib’s finger when she pointed over to the stump.

“What about the hatchet?”

“Ib,” Garry‘s lips thinned and his hands shook. “What hatchet?”

Ib furrowed her brow and turned back to the stump, only to pause. Her mouth opened a bit and then closed. “It was right there…”

“Damn it” Garry heard Luno breathe.

“Ah, don’t worry about it Ib! I thought I saw a snake in the grass earlier, but it was just my eyes playing tricks on me.” Amelia tried to play it off. “Everything here is sorta lifeless and dim that it’s easy to get spooked.”

Ib’s eyes furrowed further, but she allowed herself to be pulled along despite her many questions. There were many ways she would describe the area around her, but dim was not one of them.

She glanced over her shoulder one last time at the elm trees that shaded the yard with their bright leaves that reminded her of summer, reading novels in her room with the window open, and travel magazines. Even though the yard was overrun with ubiquitous dandelions the sunlight made it look warm and inviting.

But there was something off about the yard…about the world around her in general, but Ib couldn’t quite place it yet. But the others being unable to see the hatchet and then its sudden disappearance unnerved her more than she let on. Luno, Garry, and Amelia also kept sharing looks with one another, but she pretended not to notice. Garry had mentioned that she had hit her head pretty hard and that Luno had to stitch her up; however, she couldn’t feel any pain, as of yet anyway.

She turned back around, intent of lessening any anxiety her friends were experiencing about her condition. She felt alright, though her legs still felt a little sluggish, but nothing that she would let impede their progress toward escaping.

Ib buried her cold hands the best she could into her sleeves and headed into the forest.

 

The group had been tirelessly searching for steps made out of tree roots for nearly half a mile before Garry found something even better. He nudged Luno with his shoulder, indicating to a tree just to the left of them. On the trunk of the tree was the black lake water in the shape of a crudely smeared handprint.

“Well, that looks like a murder scene,” Amelia commented as her eyes traced the smudge that trailed to the right.

“It wouldn’t come off,” Soaru stated and looked down at his right hand.

“Lucky for us you had a rough time.” Amelia offhandedly remarked as she started to head in the direction the smudge left off. “The real search begins now.”

Luno bit back a smile at the indignation that crossed Soaru’s face. Amelia truly had a way with words. He turned back to Garry, only to find him and Ib standing together, staring back at their previous path. Luno would have thought that the scene looked rather cute if Garry hadn’t whipped around and said, “run!”

And then she appeared.

It been so long since Garry and Ib saw her that they nearly forgot the horror that was _Cycloptic Smile_ from the veins that starkly ran across her skin to the painted lips curled too tightly over pearly teeth. It didn’t take long for Garry to think that it had been too soon since their last encounter while Ib looked at her the colour of her visible eye—cobalt.

Ib and Garry swirled around and dashed after Luno and Amelia, but Garry stopped twenty yards out when he noticed Soaru was missing. He turned back to see him still standing in the same spot by the tree.

Behind him, Luno and Amelia had stopped roughly thirty yards further, and Ib had stopped mere feet from him and was looking at him.

“Soaru, run!” Amelia yelled, cupping her hands over her mouth to make herself even louder than normal. But Soaru didn’t appear to hear her.

_Cycloptic Smile_ was walking, god, Garry had no idea how she made walking appear so menacing, and was getting closer to Soaru, too close.

Garry clenched his fists, willing a miracle to happen. He had nearly lost too many people already. It was just like before when they were under her influence, unable to move. Except that she had no control over them this time around. Garry kept hoping Amelia or Luno would act, but they were too far—they wouldn’t make it in time.

He heard Ib start to walk forwards, her stride picking up speed, and the image of _Cycloptic Smile_ pushing her into the alley flashed before him. He reached out and grabbed her hand as she started to pass him. “Don’t!”

She was yanked back, nearly falling over but swirled around to look at him. Surprise flittered across her face before settling into determination.

“Garry!” He fumbled for words, unable to communicate that he didn’t want to put her in danger, and that she wouldn’t make it in time, or how scared he was at the idea of having to choose who he lost.

Ib’s cold hand touched his shoulder, firmly yet gently pulling him down to look at her. In the span of time that felt too long while Soaru was staring down his own certain death, but was probably only four seconds, a reckless idea sprouted in Garry’s mind.

He put his own hand atop Ib’s, took a breath, and offered her a small smile, which she returned.

“Go with Amelia and Luno and look for those steps. We’ll catch up.” Garry’s hand slid from hers and he ran.

 

The tiny voice in Soaru’s head was shrill in its demands for him to get as far away from _Cycloptic Smile_ as he could. Being a rather rational person, Soaru had every intention of doing just that, but his legs had other plans. Instead of getting him the hell out of there, the appendages had debated on the best course of action which ranged from mimicking the moves in some karate movie he had watched with Amelia (which was instantly vetoed. His clumsy karate moves vs a painting that could send him flying with a little push…yeah, talk about a one sided battle) to reenacting the tree he played in third grade.

 Eventually, it was decided that Soaru should react the same way he did when he walked in on his father and his teacher for the first time. Utterly shocked, a little disturbed, and very afraid. Only this time, he didn’t think his dad was being beaten. No, but Soaru knew he wouldn’t get out alive if he didn’t move. He had thought _Cycloptic Smile_ was terrifying from the side but, God, the front was sooo much worse.

Soaru had no idea how far away she was, he would guess around less than ten feet, but it was too close for comfort. He didn’t know why he just hadn’t run away with the others when he had the chance. He had most definitely wanted to as he enjoyed not being dead! But then he had seen her face and the rest was history. He was going to die.

‘I don’t want to die!’ Soaru shook.

Her hands reached out for him. He saw the dried blood on her fingertips and the bitten nails and her purple veins. Soaru looked into her single cobalt eye and then he heard her.

‘ _Don’t look at me. Don’t look at me. Hideous. Hideous. Hideous. Hideous. SToP lOoKINg!_ ’

It was the voice that had been whispering to him the other day. He had blamed Amelia and the others for it, claiming they were psychologically manipulating him. Garry had said that it was someone else and Luno said there was another threat that couldn’t harm him physically, but that _Cycloptic Smile_ could.

Soaru stupidly kept staring at her. His mother popped into his mind, sitting across from him with a tea cup in her hands. She had taken a quaint sip while staring out through the sliding glass door into the backyard.

“Ah, so you found out.”

“Mother, aren’t you upset? Fath-he…he’s been cheating on you.” Soaru clasped his hands together beneath the table.

“I’ve known for some time now.” She said as she looked at him evenly with a hint of a smile.

Soaru had been dumbstruck, his mouth hanging open. No, his mother was supposed to be angry, even angrier at being betrayed than Soaru felt!

“Soaru,” she had set down her tea and looked back over at him. “Your father and I love you just the same as we always have.”

“If you knew…why are you still together?” Soaru clutched the fabric covering his knees, unable to look at his mother any longer.

“Your father and I still love each other…but it’s a different type of love. We were going to wait until you turned twenty to part.” She folded her hands on the table. “We never thought you would find out before then…”

“You mean divorce!” Soaru had seethed, hurt and angry and unable to comprehend how his mother could be so calm about the whole thing. “Mother, why are you the only one who has to suffer? He has been cheating on you and yet you still—“

“Soaru, you will have to decide for yourself how you handle your father.”

Soaru had come close to hating his mother. For a month he had thought up hundreds of things he wanted to say to her and his father. He wanted to shout that he hated them for lying to him for so long, to tell his mother that she should have been home, to blame her for not picking how he should feel about his father. His father had been Soaru’s whole world and who he aspired to be. But he had been cheating on his wife and with a man! If it was another woman, Soaru would still be upset, but why did his father marry his mother if he was gay? Had Soshi Sato, his father, ever loved his mother?

Why hadn’t she been more upset by this? To be replaced by someone nearly seven years younger than you was horrible, but to have it also be a man—unforgivable. His mother honoured their wedding vows and never so much as looked at another man while his father was happily screwing Soaru’s tenth grade teacher.

Soaru stared into _Cycloptic Smile’s_ eye, his eyes watering and his hands shaking. He wanted his mother. He wanted to see her and tell her he was so sorry for leaving with only a letter to say goodbye. That he had been lying when he said he hated them. That he just hadn’t known how to react to his father and was so twisted up with thinking that he was the reason they stayed married and unhappy.

The brown hair on _Cycloptic Smile’s_ left side shifted. Through the gaps Soaru could see an empty eye-socket. He would become a creature, Soaru realized. He was going to leave his parents with only an angsty letter filled with hateful lies to remember him…they would blame themselves…they would suffer. Soaru didn’t want them to suffer.

He closed his eyes and tried to pull away, but her arms were tightly clutching his wrists. Her voice kept filtering through his head, but the anger he felt towards his mother had fizzled out. Any instance of him being angry with her (the time she lost him in the supermarket when he was 6, locking him out by mistake for three hours, eating the pudding he had been saving), but he would picture her crying over his grave and snap out of it.

“Let go of me!” He yelled, digging his heels into the dirt and wriggling backwards.

A bat smashed the top of her veiny wrists and, as she recoiled, Garry struck out with one of his long legs, kicking her hard enough in the shoulder to send her stumbling back.

“Garry!” Soaru was between being shocked and awed. “You…came back for me…even after what I said?” What I did.

Garry sucked in a breath, resisting the urge to hold his aching foot and hop around. It felt like he had just kicked a boulder rather than a living painting.

“We’re all getting out of here.” Garry stared over at _Cycloptic Smile_ , who was getting back up. He glanced down at his bat, specifically at the large two dents in the shape of the painting’s wrists, and sweat started to profusely pour down his body. Another hit and he wouldn’t have a weapon.

“Time to go!” He shrilly announced. He scooped Soaru up over his shoulder and took off.

_Cycloptic Smile_ let out a quaking scream behind them, and Garry had no doubt that she was beyond livid at them.

“Where are we going?” Soaru helpfully asked. His voice went in and out as he bounced a bit on Garry’s shoulder.

“Uhh…” Garry supplied intelligently. To Garry’s credit, he was drowning in adrenaline, running fast enough to make his gym teachers cry with joy, his had just kicked what felt like a brick wall, his hands were still shaking from the recoil of striking aforementioned brick wall with a bat, and he was currently carrying Soaru. So, yeah, he was a bit out of breath. “Find the others; they went on ahead of us to find those steps.”

“How are we supposed to find them?” Soaru was met with silence before he felt Garry shrug. However, Soaru couldn’t be sure as Garry had jumped over some roots to avoid tripping.

“Right…I didn’t think that far ahead…” Garry at least had the decency to sound sheepish. “But we passed by the last place I saw them and I can’t imagine that they’ve gotten too far.”

“Even if they had, your legs will get us there in no time.” Soaru slipped before going silent. He had not intended to say that out loud.

“You’re not wrong,” Garry responded, rather amused, as he leaped over a log covered in moss.

Soaru, seeing as how he was being carried, could only stare behind them. This turned out to be for the best as he spotted something on a white stone that Garry had passed over. “Wait!”

His ride came to an abrupt halt. “What is it?”

Garry had yet to set him down, and Soaru didn’t ask. He was well-aware that it would be much faster to just have Garry carry him until they met up with everyone than run on his own two legs. “Look, on that rock, do you see it?”

Garry turned to look at the stones, effectively cutting off Soaru’s view so that he was not staring at some rather bland trees. The taller teen knelt down and picked up rock, which had a black thread tied around it. He gave a small tug and saw that it continued deeper into the forest.

“Luno,” Garry said with a smile. The blond has come through for them once again. “He left us a trail.”

Soaru nodded, before remembering Garry couldn’t see it. “Hansel and Gretel style, fitting.”

Garry paused, not wanting to ruin the joke but not sure if it was a joke or an observation. He decided to let it go and continued following the string, intent on getting back to everyone. Garry had yet to see _Cyclopti Smile_ do anything other than walk menacingly at a brisk pace, so he was not too worried about her catching up right away. He had put enough distance between them to get a small walking break, which would hopefully last until they regrouped.

The string continued to slide easily through his fingers and Soaru helpfully held the rock so that _Cycloptic Smile_ wouldn’t stumble upon it. Though, she probably knew the forest better than they did.

Garry frowned, worried if he should go back to running. Just because she walked didn’t necessarily mean she couldn’t run…and she had the advantage of knowing the landscape. She may only need to walk in order to cut them off. She could even know of a shortcut that would allow her to intercept the others. Garry quickened his pace.

“Why didn’t Amelia or Luno come get me?” Garry nearly groaned. No way in hell did he want to hear Soaru go on about how this was his and Ib’s fault again. He did not have it in him to suplex the other into the dirt or leave him behind, but Garry was not above his channeling his sister for a few minutes.

“Not that I am not grateful to you,” and Garry’s patience miraculously returned. “But…it seems like they don’t…”

“They do care,” Garry cut in. He should have noticed before that Soaru was no longer the fearful and scared boy that lashed out at him. Okay, he was still scared, but everyone was so Garry wasn’t going to fault him for that. “And they wanted too, I have no doubt about that. But they were too far out…they wouldn’t have made it—I just made it.”

“…Why did you save me?” Soaru asked quietly. “I was not nice to any of you, but you especially.”

“We’ve had too many near casualties tonight.” Garry stated and had to take a moment to digest that, yes, this would probably equate to a few hours or so when they got back.

“Wait, tonight? Days must have passed already!” Soaru’s eyes were slightly wide, waiting for Garry to admit his mistake.

“No, we’ve…been in a place that’s not too different from this, still out to kill us but with a more art gallery aesthetic for the most part, and whenever we get out only hours have passed. It’s sorta like the time we spend here is passing by at an incredibly slow rate in our world. So, what feels like days here may just be a handful of hours in real time…do you follow?” Garry asked, unsure if he was making sense.

“Yes, this is all crazy.” Soaru replied as he tried to fathom what it would be like to escape only to discover a few hours had passed. The horrors he had faced and lived through, his realizations, his changes to his self, all trivialized by those hours. Certainly, the changes would appear sudden to whoever was not with him—and it struck him that they knew. Amelia, Luno, Ib, and Garry had experienced it before…and Soaru, Dmitri, and Gillian, in their ignorance to how the changes came about in such a small time frame, had condemned them.

What horrors had Luno faced to finally act on what he wanted rather than putting Dmitri’s happiness before his own; for Amelia to become attached to Ib and Garry so quickly; for Ib and Garry to bond with them so deeply? They were living in stretched out minutes. They were close not only because they had similar interests, but also because they were facing life-threatening situations together. Things like that push people together and, though Soaru wasn’t going to admit it out loud, he felt closer to Garry and Ib.

Garry wasn’t the scary tall monster he assumed he was. He could react violently, like when he grabbed Dmitri, but he was also genuinely worried about everyone. He was even able to suck in his fear and save him. Ib…he still didn’t know too much about her, honestly, but she was important to Amelia and Luno, and especially to Garry. And while Soaru had not seen it for himself, she was brave enough to go after him twice and spark Garry into action. He also felt guilty about what he had let happen to her.

“Does Ib hate me?” Soaru stared hard at the string. If Ib hated him for his attitude or words he wouldn’t blame her.

“What?” From Soaru’s view, it appeared that Garry nearly dropped the thread. “No, I doubt she could hate anyone! Did something happen?”

“No, I just…I flinched when she looked at me earlier…and she hasn’t looked at me since.” Soaru admitted.

“Ah,” Garry said, as if that answered everything, as he began to walk again. “You should ask her when we regroup.”

They walked in silence for another few minutes before, in the immediate distance, Garry spotted the steps made from tree roots. He dashed across the remaining distance, taking the steps in leaps and continued up the sloped hill. A few times, he had to steady himself by grabbing tree branches and pushing off trees to gain momentum.

Garry had just reached the top of the hill when he asked his companion, “What was next on the list?”

The thread trail ended there at the top. Garry looked out into the forest, trying to spot any of their friends when he caught sight of some familiar looking figures lying in the dirt, which was lit up.

“A tree covered in lanterns.” Soaru answered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omakes:
> 
> 1\. *If the group had run together with Garry carrying Soaru*  
> Amelia: Garry, wait, tiny legs here!"  
> Luno: I could carry you...  
> Amelia: .....no, that's ok.  
> Fucking blocked! REJECTED.
> 
> 2\. *As Garry gets the idea to go get Soaru himself*  
> Garry: *turns to Amelia and throws up double peace signs* MID-LIFE CRISIS GARRY IS BACK!
> 
> 3\. *Cycloptic Smile is menacing*  
> Soaru: *into his walkie talkie* She...she's just standing there...menacingly!  
> Luno: *into his walkie talkie* One more step and it's night night forever.
> 
>  
> 
> Some fan art by my lovely friend: [Garry is a pretentious art fuck and other characters](http://itty-bitty-boo.tumblr.com/post/156965801261/character-lineup-for-my-waifu-friends-ib-fanfic)  
> In order from left to right: Kate, Neah, Lumi, Garry, Ib, Amelia, Luno, & Soaru (looking spiffy).
> 
> •Originally, it was going to be Dmitri or Soaru who came across Ib and Amelia in the cavern, but somehow Luno ended up being chosen.
> 
> •There were going to be 2 other characters in addition to Amelia who joined Ib and Garry after Careless Carrie, but it was shortened down to one—Luno.
> 
> Well...it's been 10 months...wow, yeah, hi. So, this chapter is obviously not the end of the arc...and I apologize for that astronomical wait. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope to get back into the practice of writing this.


End file.
